Reccurence
by your royal highness
Summary: Sequel to 'Thousand Miles' After a fluke incident, Tony meets his real Dad in the midst of fixing his relationship with Ziva. But will a fatal disaster strike as he mends two relationships? TIVA
1. Call Me

**Okay! So this is the official sequel to 'Thousand Miles'. Obviously, I have left a LOT of cliff hangers and unfinished storylines in that one…this is to clear them all up! If you want to read this, read 'Mistakes' first, then 'Thousand Miles' and THEN read this one! So enjoy! OH! And I looked up the surname of Tony's mom? Well they apparently said it in South by Southwest…it's Paddington!**

Tony didn't know how long he stood there, just staring and gaping a couple of times at the man in front of him, his folder still grasped in his tight grip, unable to move. Just…staring, "Dad?" He whispered again, and Gibbs continued to give confused looks to the rest of his teammates.

He hadn't seen it coming. That wasn't Tony's dad. Well….not the Dad he thought he saw in the pictures…

"Do I know you?" The man finally asked, and Tony's heart nearly broke as he looked down a little, but he just flashed him his famous DiNozzo smile.

"Yeah…you know, Anthony DiNozzo!" He grinned, sticking his hand out, but the man just stared at him. He sighed and dropped his hand, "Caprice Paddington." He muttered out, throwing out his Mom's maiden name.

The man suddenly caught on and gave a small smile, "She got pregnant?" He asked, his accent prominent in his voice. Tony gave a laugh and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm…your….your son, sir." He let out a deep breath and shoved his hands into his pockets, looking down and then up at him, giving a smirk.

The rest of the team was completely confused. Tony's former team had to get to their flight before it took off, and Ziva was a little happy for her partner, yet scared at the same time. McGee noticed her look.

"What…what's going on?" He whispered in the Israeli's ear.

"He is meeting his Dad." She gave a small grin, happiness filling her as she watched their exchange.

"Oh." De Luca said before starting away. Tony grabbed onto his arm.

"Hey!" He announced, pulling him back, "I…you….you're my Dad!" He managed out.

"Yes. And your mother slept around."

"But you're my Dad. You didn't sleep around."

"Never had a woman since Caprice." He admitted, thinking briefly back to her, "That's why I left her." Tony let go of him and stepped back a little but De Luca didn't seem to notice. _He _left _her_? He could have had a real father…a real father…he watched as his Dad reached into his bag and pulled out a business card, scribbling something on the back of it.

"Let's go for coffee later. Catch up…Anthony." He gave a small smirk, "I really have a plane to catch. Ciao." He bid his hat and then started off, leaving Tony there, standing and staring after his Dad.

Gibbs walked up to him, "Tony?" He asked, shaking his shoulder, "What the hell was that?"

He gave a small look towards Gibbs as his Dad disappeared into the crowd. He looked back down at the ground, "It was…nothing…boss." And with that, he promptly pushed past Abby and McGee and started out of the airport. The team shared looks with each other and then Ziva started after him, wanting to know what had suddenly changed his mood like _that_.

As she started to walk, Gibbs caught onto her arm, stopping her, "Gibbs!" She exclaimed, abruptly stopping.

"No, Ziva. There's something you aren't telling me." She just looked down at the ground, as if she was caught, and then back up at him, "You're coming with me."

"Gibbs!" she repeated, "I do not find this necessary…" She started, but it didn't matter, he was already pulling her away from McGee and Abby, looking confused as ever.

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Eighteen hours later, Tony DiNozzo sat rooted in the same place in his apartment. The airplane company had managed to send him bags back to him before they took off, which made Tony very happy to know about. However, at 0100h in the morning, he found himself unable to determine what he wanted to accomplish. He sighed and stared down at the now warm bottle of beer that he had cracked open at around ten hundred hours in the morning, after he made it back from the airport, got into his apartment, taken a shower (hoping it would calm his nerves), and then sat down on his couch. He hadn't moved since then, except for the one time he got up to get the door, one time to turn on the light, and then the other couple of times he needed to go to the bathroom.

He stared at the TV screen, blank, unmoving, like he was before. Suddenly, he heard the door open, and, on reflex, his hand moved to his SIG on his waist (which he never removed). He relaxed, however, when the door was finally opened all the way to show his pretty little Israeli standing there.

"Tony?" She questioned, and he took in her form. She was still in the clothes that she was wearing in the airport, but her hair was a little messed up and her eyes looked a little dark as well as sporting a tint of red. She closed the door behind her and gave a small smile, "I was just…I forgot something here. I hope I am not interrupting your show…" She gave a glance to the television and noticed it was off, not on mute like she had expected it to be. She looked up at him, confusion definite in her eyes, "I will just grab what I came for and be off, yes?" She questioned, and he just nodded, pointing his head and his still full beer bottle towards the hallway to his right.

Another confused look passed her eyes, yet she moved towards the bedroom. Once she was safely there, she frantically looked around, trying to find something that was hers. She scanned the room. She didn't realize that she had cleaned up _that _much in an attempt to keep him off of her mind last night. Suddenly, she saw a bright red, silky fabric coming out of one of the drawers. Curiously, she walked over to it, and, in the drawer in which they kept all of their 'toys', there it was. What she was 'looking for'. Angrily, with a huff on her face, she looped a finger through the string and pulled it out, not thinking twice about Tony's mental state of mind, before storming into the living room.

She stopped in front of the couch, her eyes narrowed to slits, one hand on her hip as she lifted up the fabric. She watched as he nervously gulped before shrugging his shoulders, "What?"

"What. Was. This. Doing. In. _Your. _Drawer?" She demanded, and he didn't have an answer, "Tony. We specifically designated drawers on one side of the room that were yours and drawers on my side of the room that are _mine." _She fumed, "Tony I just can't believe that you would steal my _thong_! I mean…Tony!" She hollered, and then she noticed that his head was turned to the side, away from her. She sighed, realizing her fault, "Tony." She calmly said, letting the fabric drop to her side, like the rest of her arm, "I…I am sorry." He looked up at her for a moment, their eyes trying desperately to read the other before she started towards the door. She had her hand on the handle when she heard his voice, stopping her dead in her tracks.

"Ziva." It was simple, just her name, but it made her heart beat fast. She didn't turn around, she just stood there, her back turned to him, her hand still on the handle, her eyes turned on the metal that she shifted in her palm, "Stay." He pleaded, more of a question than anything else. She sighed.

"I need to get home, Tony." She said, still refusing to turn to face him, "I got what I needed."

"Well I didn't." He shrugged, but was still greeted with her back to him, "And I know that you didn't come over here at 0123h just to get a _thong. _You can't sleep either." She sighed, almost defeated. How come he could see through all of her walls so easily? He knew how to break them down, build them up, and use x-ray vision. Sometimes all in a matter of five minutes or less, "Besides." He let out a deep breath, "Saved me a trip."

And that was what made her turn around and finally face him, her hand leaving the handle, "What?" She asked, and he just patted the couch next to him, scooting over a little. She sighed and sat down next to him.

"Something's bothering you."

"I could say the same for you." She noted, their thighs touching as they stared into each other's eyes.

"Ziva I never meant to hurt you." He said, softly.

She looked down at her hands and took in a deep breath before answering him, "I never meant to either. And I never meant to tell Gibbs. I know that was your decision, I know that you should be able to make that decision on your own, but it was Gibbs, and he was interrogating me, and even I am not strong enough to resist Gibbs interrogation. I know I should not have even pried to begin with…but I just wanted to know about the plague…and then you were upset when I ventured further and…"

"Ziva." Tony cut her off, and she looked up at him, this time recognizing the confusion in his eyes, "What are you talking about?"

"You were not talking about telling Gibbs about your real father?" He looked down, sighing a big sigh before looking back up at her, deep into her chocolate brown eyes.

"I was talking about not properly saying goodbye to you, Ziva." He softly said, and he watched her eyes soften as well. He tentatively moved his hand up to push a piece of hair that had fallen in front of her face behind her ear. His fingertips traced her jaw line, and as he caressed her cheek with the back of his hand, she closed her eyes and leaned subconsciously into his touch. He scooted just millimeters closer towards her, "I just…I knew we were leaving, and I didn't want to make my departure hurt you more than it should." He started, moving in slowly as she opened her eyes. He cupped her face with two hands, pulling her closer to her, slowly, carefully, "but now that I'm not leaving…" He started, moving his face closer to hers, "I can properly say goodbye." He murmured, his lips centimeters from hers before he pressed his lips firmly up against her own.

Instantly, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pushed him harder against her, and Tony moved one hand from her face to the back of her neck, tangling his fingers into her brown, smooth, straightened strands.

He ran his tongue over the bottom of her lip, waiting for access, and she gave it to him immediately. The second she opened her mouth, Tony realized he couldn't breath and he quickly pulled away, breathing heavily than he ever had before. He turned away from her, and she looked down at him in confusion.

"Tony?" She asked, sounding out of breath but not looking quite as beaten as Tony. She placed a hand on his back, and he turned towards her, "Are you okay?" She asked, concern evident in her brown eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He grinned, pecking her on the lips one more time, yet she was still confused, "I don't want to fight with you, again."

"Neither do I but Tony…." He pressed his lips to hers again, this time making sure that each kiss lasted about a second, "What is…" Another kiss, "wrong…?" Another kiss, and she finally managed to pull away, leaving a depressed Tony on the couch as she stood up, "Tony. What is wrong?" She asked, concerned.

"Nothing." He said, all thoughts of his Dad leaving him, "Look, I'm tired." He stood up too and faced her, "Sleep?"

"As long as all we do is sleep." He nodded.

"That's all I wanted." He pinched her lightly, "I need to get some water. I'll meet you in bed." He watched as she nodded and then started towards the bedroom, glancing back at him the entire way. Once he was sure that she was in (the door closed), he quickly moved into the kitchen and then poured himself a glass of water before he managed to cough. The tingling sensation, the one that felt like the feather had been riding his throat. His heart was still racing as he walked back towards the bedroom, opening up the door to reveal Ziva sitting on their bed, running a brush through her hair. She wore black sweats and one of his old t-shirts. He grinned at her, and she just smirked back as he quickly grabbed a t-shirt off of the ground and changed his shirt before pulling off his pants and socks and staying in his boxers. She set the brush down just as he crawled into bed, and she flicked off the light before they automatically moved to their 'couple's position'; the way that they slept when they were together. Ziva moved to her side as Tony did the same, pulling her up against his chest as they intertwined their hands together. He rested his head against her shoulder, "Lailah Tov." She muttered.

"Buona Notte." He grinned as he closed his eyes. Ziva, however, kept hers awake, for she couldn't sleep. Tony's still raspy breathing was in her ear, louder than ever. Her heart accelerated, and she stiffened in his grip, and he naturally tightened his arms around her, "Shh…Ziva…" He ginned again, pressing a kiss against her cheek, "Before I get the handcuffs." He teased, "And take away your lock pick."

This time she didn't laugh. She didn't even smile. She just stared straight forward at the night, wide away, completely and utterly _scared. _Something was wrong.

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***takes deep breath* so there we go. Next chapter we'll find out more about Tony's Dad…and could Ziva's Mossad senses be kicking in?! I think I kinda rushed it with the storyline, but whatever. Review, please? I had lots of trouble writing this. So I'd appreciate your reviews! Maybe get me in the 'writing mood' lol! I just wasn't in it today! So review! Please! Thanks!**


	2. Problem?

Ziva David got up on her own, her internal body clock going off. She groaned. She didn't want to get up. She saw that Tony was still clutching her body closely to his, and she lifted her head up a little, noticing that even though he was still holding onto her, he was lying flat on his back, snoring silently. Smiling, she carefully unraveled her body from his and quickly moved her hand out of his own, pulling the blanket up over his body, something that he must have kicked off in the middle of the night.

Heading over to her side of the bedroom, she pulled out her jogging outfit, changed quickly and then pulled her hair up. She stopped as she was out of the door and realized that she had forgotten her iPod. Heading back towards the bedroom, she noticed the device on the dresser, so she grabbed it and then silently closed the door behind her. Normally, she would have woke Tony up so that they could go running together like every other morning, but today she decided to let him sleep. Planning her course in her head, she slipped the ear buds in, pulled on her windbreaker, and then grabbed the key on the lanyard (that Tony wore) off of the hook. She swung it over her head, letting it dangle in front of her as she placed the iPod in the holder that Tony had bought her last Valentine's day. That and a beautiful diamond bracelet that she barely wore. Closing the door behind her, she thought back to the bracelet. It was beautiful, she had to admit that, but it was too nice to wear to work. It would arise suspicion. And besides, she didn't know whether or not they'd have to go someplace where she could possibly lose it.

She broke into a light jog as she started on her course. It was relatively dark, but there was a hint of sun over the horizon, signaling that it was preparing itself for its rise.

As she turned the corner, she thought again, back to that bracelet. She knew it hurt him, that she didn't wear it, but she had told him time after time again that she didn't want anything for Valentine's Day. She started to play the iPod and then realized that she had grabbed Tony's, not hers. Frank Sinatra filled her ears, and she smiled slightly.

Sinatra and the sound of her feet rebounding off of the ground were the only two things that she was hearing at the moment, but her mind was elsewhere. She was thinking about last night. She smirked slightly; they had kissed, again. How come her heart fluttered even more ever single time he kissed her? It was a bad habit. Never happened with any of the other men she was with? But the way that he pulled back so quickly? It scared her, for it just wasn't something that Tony did. What had she done? And then the way that his breath was in her ear…maybe she was just imagining things…or Tony was as happy that they were back together as she was…thoughts were running through her head before she suddenly stopped, her eyes growing wide.

It couldn't…

She practically ripped the ear buds out of her ears, her heart accelerating as she finally realized what may be the problem…the breathing…the medical file…it…it couldn't be plague? Could it? Immediately she turned around and started to sprint back to the apartment.

What if Tony was awake? What if he couldn't breathe? What if he was having a near heart attack on the floor right now? She could almost hear him gasping out her name, and that made her pick up the pace. Her heart was beating uncontrollably, and she was nearly sweating out of anxiety. She ran faster. What if he was still asleep, but had trouble breathing? What if he passed out? She saw the door to his apartment and she ran up the stairs, sticking the key in, turning it, opening up the door and ripping it out before slamming it shut and running into the bedroom. She stopped in the doorway. He was lying in the same place that he was before, breathing and snoring like normal. She tried to get her heart to calm down. She walked over to the dresser.

_You're freaking out, Ziva. It's Tony. He's fine. He would tell you if something was wrong. You're partners. Remember the promise? No. More. Secrets. _She nodded, trying to convince herself as she placed the iPod back onto the dresser, trying to control her shaking hands. _He's fine, Ziva! _She scolded herself, _Stop freaking out! _She took a deep breath, walked over to Tony, and placed her hand just a couple of inches above his mouth. She could feel the breath coming out. He was breathing normally. She took another big sigh, thought of his beautiful face, and then started back out of the bedroom.

Maybe if you make some bacon, that will calm you down. She thought to herself as she started towards the fridge, opening it up and pulling out a package of bacon.

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Tony DiNozzo smelled the great whiff of bacon swirl around his nostrils as he started to wake up. He opened his eyes up slowly and murmured her name, "Ziva." He murmured, and then realized that she wasn't there. He opened his eyes all the way and came to the conclusion that she was making breakfast, like every other morning.

He grinned and then took in a big whiff of the substance before he felt his lungs clamp up, and he started to cough. He turned his head into his pillow, muffling the sound before he finally stopped. Shaking his head he threw the covers off and then swung his legs over the side. He ran a hand through his bedroom hair and then started out of the bedroom, following the scent of the bacon into the kitchen.

Ziva was there, standing in front of the stove, a large pile of bacon on a plate next to her. She continued to make more as he smirked a little, walking towards her and wrapping his arms around her, pressing his hands up against her eyes. He grinned as he leant down and whispered into her ear, "Guess who?" He asked, changing to a Sean Connery accent. Ziva knew it was his favorite, so she decided to play along as the bacon continued to crackle on the pan that she was holding.

"Sean Connery?" she asked, grinning as he let his hands drop from her eyes, clamping them together around her as she turned the bacon.

"Yes, my lady." He said, the Sean Connery impression still there, "The name's Bond. James Bond. And you are my hot babe…" He grinned, and then winced as he felt an elbow hit him just above…the sensitive part, "What was that for?" He managed to breathe out, protecting his area as much as he could from any other whacks. She finished the bacon and turned off the stove, turning quickly around to face him.

She raised an eyebrow, "Babe?"

"What? It's a compliment!" He defended himself, standing up straight.

"Maybe if I was a trap. Which I am not." She defended herself this time.

Tony was confused, "I think you mean tramp, Ziva." She rolled her eyes and scoffed, flinging her hand in a motion that said that she really didn't care.

"Whatever. Do not call me that." She demanded, and Tony knew she was serious, but he wanted to continue. He could think of a thousand other nicknames he'd like to call her besides sweet-cheeks and sweetheart. Honey? Hon? Sugar? Darling? Dear? Princess? Baby? Bellezza? Angel? Sweetie? Cupcake? Babe? La Bonita? Cutie? Love? Sexy? Hottie with a body? Now he knew that he was going too far with that one. He didn't want to end up dead.

"Aw come on, sweetheart. Can't I call you that?"

"You are not going to give up until you get what you want, yes?"

"Depends." He grinned, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her towards him. He leaned his face down close to hers, "What do I want?"

"You want to sleep with me." She murmured, and he gave a small smirk. She half-closed her eyes.

"You know how to read my mind…"

"Hmmm…" She mused, "Maybe later." She broke away from him when he was just centimeters from planting one on her. She grabbed the bacon and then set it down on the table, "Eat." She commanded as she started out of the kitchen, "I will change. Gibbs would be very upset if we are late."

Tony looked down at the bacon and then at his watch. They had thirty minutes to get to work. He quickly scoffed down a piece of bacon before his eyes caught the newspaper. Ziva must have brought it in. As he read through it, he picked it up only to have a card fall out of the paper. He sighed and ran his hand through his bed head as he realized it was his father's business card. He was lawyer. Great.

Well he was breaking two of Gibbs rules today, wasn't he? He thought as he heard the water start and then he started towards the bedroom to get changed for another day in the office.

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The elevator doors opened and Tony and Ziva stepped out, smiling at one another, yet they were able to mask their true expressions at the moment.

Ziva was worried about Tony and his medical issues that he was going through at the moment, though she swore to herself that it was nothing, it really wasn't.

And then there was Tony, his Dads business card burning in his pocket. As they entered the bullpen, McGee was already sitting there, typing on his computer while sipping a cup of coffee.

"Morning, McGee." Ziva acknowledged, giving a smile as she dropped her backpack down on the ground behind her desk and then took her seat.

"Probie." Tony simply said, smirking a little as he did the same, tossing Ziva a flirtatious grin across the bullpen. She smirked back, again, and then started up her computer.

"So…" Tim started up the conversation. Both Tony and Ziva looked over at him, "Whatcha two do last night?"

"Get your McHands out of our McBusiness!" Tony demanded, and Ziva laughed a little.

McGee sighed, defeated, but Ziva came to his rescue, "We talked, McGee. About him, the team, his Father…" Tony caught his breath on that one, "And us." She smiled a little, and Tony met hers.

"Well you two better not be 'talking' today." Gibbs announced as he walked into the bullpen, three case files in hand. He slapped one down on Ziva's desk, then on Tony's, and then moved and slapped one down on McGee's, "Cold case files. All day." Tony groaned and then flipped the file folder open as Gibbs never stopped walking, he just continued back out of the bullpen, "Oh. And welcome back, DiNozzo." He finished as he disappeared from their sights. Tony growled angrily stared down at the case file.

Ziva chuckled, "Something the matter, yes?"

"This is the one thing I didn't miss when I was team leader." He muttered and Ziva just gave a small smile as she stood up.

"Well I am going to go and visit Abby."

"Oo!" Tony grinned, liking the idea, "I'll come too!"

McGee rolled his eyes and Ziva stopped her partner, "No. Tony. Just a girl to girl conversation." She said, and then she gave 'the look' before starting out of the bullpen and entering the elevator.

"Oooo…" Tony mused as he watched his girlfriend exit, "Girl only conversation? Whatcha think they're talking about?"

"Why do you even care?" McGee asked, "Can't you keep out of people's conversations for just a little?"

"Well jeez, probie, I was just trying to make conversation."

"Yeah, well, if you want to talk, you can start by telling me what the hell happened in the airport yesterday morning." He said, "With your Dad? How come you never told us?" Tony looked down, feeling the card that was burning in his pocket.

"I don't wanna talk about." He muttered, but McGee didn't stop.

"I mean…Gibbs didn't know!" He exclaimed, "How'd you manage to do that?"

"I said that I don't wanna talk about. What part of that don't you understand?" He demanded.

He sighed, "Look, Tony. I'm just trying to help you out. You should call him."

"Look." Tony said, turning to him, "You want to help out? Leave me alone. And stop asking questions."

"But you will call him." He stated.

"I said stop asking questions!" Tony demanded.

"That wasn't a question. Technically it was more of a statement. It wasn't rhetorical either it just…"

"Okay, enough, enough with the big words." He said, turning one side of his face up in disgust. McGee decided to be quiet by that point, finally taking the hint. However, Tony thought back to what Tim said. _"You should call him." _It honestly wasn't a bad idea.

Tony scoffed.

Since when did he ever take advice from McGee?

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"Abby?" Ziva questioned as she stuck her head into the lab. The goth jumped over to her, the music still loudly blaring as she brought her into a tight hug.

"Ziva!" She exclaimed, grinning like an idiot, "Aren't you just _so _happy that Tony's back and that awful awful Lynn person's history?!" She asked, bouncing back and forth from each foot.

Ziva just gave a small smile, "Yes. But Abby…." She started, "I need to talk to you."

"Yeah, sure, what's up?" She asked, turning down the music. Just barely, but still.

Ziva struggled. Where would she start? She wringed her hands together. She needed to tell someone about her concern for Tony. But then again…she needed to keep it a secret, "Uh…never mind, Abby." She murmured, nodding once, twice, convincing herself it was the right decision and then started out of the room. Abby furrowed her eyebrows together and then picked up the phone.

"Uh…McGee? Yeah…something's really weird with Ziva. Get down here!" She was about to hang up when she remembered something, "WAIT!….Caf-Pow!" And then she hung up the phone.

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The elevator doors re-opened and Ziva stepped out into Autopsy, looking around as the doors slid open with a hiss. She noticed that no one was there, and she walked over to the desk, picking the lock as she started to move things around, searching for Tony's medical file.

"Ziva?" She suddenly heard, and she turned around quickly, coming face to face with Doctor Mallard, coming out of the other door.

"Ducky!" She exclaimed, "I was just…"

"Looking for Tony's medical file, my dear?"

She furrowed her eyebrows together, "I…how did you know that?"

"Found the file while I was looking for a pen." He smiled, walking towards her, "I returned it to Dr. Pitt."

She gaped a little and then nodded, realizing it was the right thing to do, "Oh. I understand." She then started out of Autopsy before Ducky stopped her.

"Ziva." He called, and she turned slightly around to face him, "Is there…something bothering you?"

She debated on her answer for a short while before she finally settled on something, "Why?" She questioned.

"Anthony is back. I figured you would be happy, but you look internally challenged. Like you are fighting with yourself." How come he could see right through her? "My dear, please, you can tell me what is wrong." He gave a small smile.

"I…." She paused for a moment. It was Tony's medical file. It was _Tony's _problem. Besides, it could just be…allergies! Or the flu! "It is not my problem to deal with." She said, and then started out of Autopsy before Ducky could even think of a word.

He sighed and stared after her. He heard the elevator doors closed, and he shook his head, "Oh Tony…what have you made the poor girl worry about now?"

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**Okay! So I know that you readers are probably still confused. But…next chapter…there will be SOME answers. Obviously not all, because that would rush the story, but I know what I want to happen, and I can't WAIT to share it with you guys! So the more reviews I get, the faster I update, and the faster I update the less of a chance I have of exploding from not being able to tell you guys what I want to write! : ) Review! Please! Anyone thinking Tony's Dad next chapter?**


	3. Dinner

He turned the card up and down…up and down…staring at it. The only sound in the bullpen was the sound of the click of the paper as it hit the desk. He stared at it, his green eyes piercing it. McGee had gotten annoyed with the sound about thirty minutes ago and decided to complete his work down in the lab with Abby. That left just him and Ziva...and the card.

Tony contemplated over and over again, thinking of about a thousand reasons why not to call his father…his _real _father and about one as to why he _should. _

Ziva David stared at him across the bullpen, concern in her eyes. Tony figured it was because of his father, but only she knew that it was because of his health. She knew she was being completely stupid, but…it didn't matter. Tony seemed fine. It was just that breathing problem he had had before. Maybe she was too much for him? She almost laughed. Tony would have been able to take it, you idiot! She scolded herself. She tried to turn back to her computer, but she sighed. She couldn't.

"Tony." She suddenly said, her voice softer coming out than what she thought about in her head. He looked up at her and stopped turning the card, "You have been staring at that card for hours." She motioned her hand towards the small paper in his hands. He sighed and looked down, "Tony." she called again, this time using a more firm voice. His eyes caught hers and he definitely read and understood the pleading this time, "Call him."

Tony didn't say anything, he just sighed and looked down.

_Damn it. _He thought to himself, _Now I have two reasons to call him. _

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"Jethro?" Ducky asked as he turned in his seat, noticing the autopsy doors open to reveal the silver haired man, "We don't have a case, do we?" He asked, standing up and starting towards his jumpsuit, getting ready.

"Naw, Duck." He stopped him, and the ME turned around, confused at his visit. No case, no body, no _new _crime scene…

"You want to talk." He finally decided, and Gibbs just tilt his head to the side, which was his version of 'yes'.

"I'll….make us some coffee!" He announced, walking to the other end of autopsy, where the coffee pot was.

"Just a short visit, Duck." Jethro said, following the ME anyways.

"What's bothering you?" He asked, laughing a bit, "You look just like dear Ziva did when she found out that I sent Tony's Medical File back to Dr. Pitt."

"Actually, that's what I came here to talk to you about."

"Tony's medical file?" He questioned, starting the coffee.

"No…" He prompted.

"Ziva." He finished, and Gibbs just stared at him. He sighed, "If your question is whether or not I know anything about why she's been acting strangely, the answer is no. But Jethro, I think that you should talk to her yourself. She will open up to you. She trusts you." Gibbs just stared at him, "She seems like a healthy young woman." Ducky noted, and Gibbs just wrung his hands together.

"Yeah, well, Duck, she's not the one I'm worried about." And with that, he left Autopsy.

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Ziva hadn't bothered on convincing him again, for when, almost another hour later, she finally decided to tell him to call him, Tony picked up the phone.

He took a deep breath and punched in the number from the back of the card before he shot her a look over his desk and the aisle between them. She stood up almost immediately and walked towards him, perching himself on the side of his desk. He turned slightly in his seat, towards her, and placed his hand on her thigh, running it up and down her leg, sending shivers through her. She knew he was only doing it because he needed calming down, but she caught his hand by placing her hand over his halfway through. He immediately switched and grasped her fingers tightly in his hand. She gave him a half smile and a squeezed back before she finally heard the ringing stop in his ear.

"_Hello?" _She heard the man on the phone say, and Tony gripped her hand tighter.

"Uh…Dad! I mean…Mr. De Luca…it's Anthony DiNozzo."

"_Anthony?" _He asked.

"Yeah, yeah." He grinned, "That's my name. I was just calling you to see…"

"_What?" _He asked, _"I have to be in a meeting in just a couple of minutes. Hurry up." _Tony gulped and Ziva squeezed his hand in reassurance. She nodded for him to continue.

"I was just wondering if you wanted to, you know, go get some coffee or something. Catch up."

There was silence on the other end for a while before he spoke again. Ziva felt Tony's hands start to sweat during the moment with no sound, and she instantly felt bad for him, _"Hmm…yes, it has been a long time." _He pondered, _"I have never actually met you, Anthony. How do I know you're my son?" _

"I have DNA tests. And a paternity test. They were supposed to have been sent to you."

"_Mmm.." _He mused, _"Must have gotten mixed up through transportation._"

"Yeah, well I still have the files." He looked up at Ziva for a fraction of a second, "If you want to see me."

"_No. I believe you, Anthony." _Tony let out a sigh of relief as De Luca continued, "_I come back to DC tomorrow around three. I will call you then and meet you for coffee." _

"Yeah, yeah! That'd be great!"

"_I look forward to meeting you. Hopefully you will be better than Caprice." _He mourned a little, and Tony just smiled. Ziva couldn't help but play the same smile on her face as well.

"I'll…see you tomorrow then!" He grinned, preparing to hang up when his Dad stopped him.

"_I need your phone number, Anthony." _

"Oh. Yeah." He gave him his cell number, "Or you can just call NCIS. Ask for Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo. They'll patch ya through." He grinned.

"_Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo? NCIS? This I must hear. I will see you tomorrow." _his father responded, and then bid him goodbye, _"Ciao." _And then he hung up the phone. The moment that he finished that, he turned his head up to look at Ziva.

"I did it." He grinned.

"You did it." She confirmed, standing up as he jumped up and pulled her tightly against his body.

"I did it…" He said in disbelief, "Promise me you'll be there tomorrow." He whispered into her ear, his breathing a little more distraught than normal, as if he was struggling to speak. Ziva closed her eyes nearly in pain for him and then hugged him tighter to her, wrapping her arms tightly against his neck, tangling her fingers in his hair, squeezing her eyes so hard she thought that they might break.

"I promise, Tony." She whispered back, but as she hugged him, she got the sinking feeling that he wasn't going to be around for much longer. She hugged him tighter.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Ziva nearly had to plead with Gibbs to let her get off work early, and, when he finally agreed, she hurried back to their apartment to go and make Tony an extra special dinner. What on earth she was going to make, she honestly had no idea, but she was going to make him something special, she knew that. He had had a hard day, with his father and the paperwork, but she still had this feeling that something was off and that he was in deep trouble from…himself.

Entering the apartment she threw her backpack down and headed straight to the kitchen, cleaning up the bacon from the morning, and then pulling a cookbook off of the shelf. She skimmed through it, following recipe after recipe all from different parts of the world before she finally found something that Tony loved, something that she had ingredients for, and something that wouldn't take forever to make; she found a lasagna that she used to make specially for Tali.

Not wanting to think about her, She threw open the fridge and then pulled out the ingredients necessary, doing the same with the cabinets before finally getting everything out. She put the lasagna together, cooking the noodles first in the boiling water on the stove. All she could think about what Tony…Tony….Tony….and her concern for him. As she cut up the fresh tomatoes, she started going exceptionally fast, slicing part of her finger in the process.

Cursing silently in Hebrew, she wiped it off on a towel and then finished off the layers of the lasagna, placing it in the oven and setting the timer before starting towards the bathroom to get some ointment on her small cut. She muttered to herself under her breath as she headed down the hallway. She was supposed to be good with knives! How could she have cut herself? Too concerned with Tony….she groaned. What had the man done to her?

Groaning, she threw open the medicine cabinet. She searched for the ointment and then found it behind the bottle of aspirin. She snatched it out and the bottle of aspirin, another bottle, lubrication, and a box of band-aids fell off of the shelf and into the sink. She applied ointment to her wound and then slapped a band-aid onto the cut before putting the items back into the shelf; she put the band-aids back first, then the ointment, then the lubrication (which she smirked at), and then…she stopped as she picked up the last bottle that came out of the medicine cabinet.

It was an antibiotic…for the plague. There were a couple of pills left. She stood there, staring at it for a moment, thinking briefly as to whether or not she wanted to refill it for him or not. Maybe she should ask Doctor Pitt about that one first….shaking her head, the smell of baking lasagna filled her nostrils, signaling that she should get back to the kitchen.

She replaced the bottle into the medicine cabinet and then headed back into the kitchen, where she started to make up the garlic bread and Tony's favorite green beans. How come she got the sinking feeling that this could turn into his last supper? _STOP IT. _She scolded herself. _He's _fine. _Didn't you see him at work? He didn't have any problems breathing and he didn't cough at all today. There's nothing to worry about Ziva, stop working yourself up over nothing. _

She managed to calm herself down as she finished the garlic bread, placing it too into the oven to cook. She set the table, lit a couple of candles, and then pulled out Tony's favorite wine. She placed it too onto the table, admiring her work.

Starting towards the bedroom, she decided she would…dress up for him tonight. She smiled a little, laughing at herself. Why was she doing this? She didn't possibly…love him? No, she did. Would she admit it? Of course. To him? Maybe not. If her life depended on it? Of course. She loved him, but she knew that there was no reason to tell him that. Unless she was one hundred percent sure that they were going to die.

She headed towards the closet, throwing it open as she sorted through Tony's many Italian-made suits. She flipped through them and then made it all the way to the back where one lone dress sat on the hangar. She pulled it out and brought it over to the bed, laying it down as she unzipped the black cover. She smiled a little, just a small closed smile, as she brought it out and admired the black little dress. She then moved to the bathroom to get changed.

When she emerged, she looked at herself in the mirror and realized it was the same dress that she wore to Jenny's funeral…Jenny…she had even done her hair the same way…wore the same necklace and earring set…she sighed. She almost wanted to change back. But she didn't, nevertheless, and, to make Tony and herself feel better about the entire affair, she pulled open the bottom drawer of her nightstand and pulled out a blue velvet box. She opened it up and slipped on the diamond bracelet that was there, engraved on the inside, _To Ziva, My Love -Tony. _Smiling a little, she heard the door open and she slipped on her heels as she hurried into the living room, stopping in the entranceway as she saw her partner walk in, untying his tie.

He was facing the door, "Hey, Ziva." He said, a little happily, "Sorry I'm late. Boss kept me." He shook his head, "That paperwork…jeez, it's gonna kill me someday." He finished with his tie, and then took off his jacket, placing it on the coat hanger as he started to unstuck his dress shirt, "Hey." He let his voice rise a little, "By the way, I was meaning to ask you how-" He took that moment to turn around completely and face her, only to let his mouth drop to the ground and for him to let his sentence linger in the air, unfinished.

He stopped everything, "Whoa." He gave a low wolf whistle, "_Ziva."_ He elongated the 'I' in her name to make it into an 'e'.

She rolled her eyes and then walked towards him, pushing his chin up, closing his mouth tightly. She leaned up and put her face dangerously close to his, his scent enticing her, "You are drooling, Tony." She grinned, flicking her finger under his chin, wiping the drool off as she kissed him lightly on the lips, "Dinner should be ready soon." She announced as she turned around and started back towards the kitchen. Tony took this opportunity to check out her ass as well as shove the tails of his shirt back into his pants. He then followed her into the kitchen, where she was reaching up into the top shelf to get two wine glasses out.

He leaned up against the fridge, "You wore that to Jenny's funeral." He softly said.

"You remember." That was all she said, simple, no tone at all in her voice. She turned around, one glass in each hand, "Wine?" She changed the subject. Of course.

Tony just nodded his head, "Sure." he then sniffed the air, "What…" Another sniff, "Are you making lasagna?" He asked in amazement as Ziva brushed past him, pouring each of them half a glass of the red liquid.

She just nodded, "Mhmm…I thought you would enjoy it." She flashed him a smile over her shoulder as she finished pouring one glass of wine.

"What, am I like dying?" He teased, and she stopped pouring the wine and looked up. She didn't laugh. _Was he being serious? _

Tony, however, didn't notice her lack of amusement with his joke. Unfazed by it, he sniffed again and then felt the familiar feeling come roaring up his throat. And then he couldn't help it.

He started to cough.

Hard.

Loudly.

He put his hand up to his mouth and leaned over a little, removing his body from where it was resting up against the fridge. He quickly stumbled over to the kitchen sink and grabbed onto each side of the cabinet, his coughing fit still going on. Ziva immediately stopped what she was doing, her eyes growing wide like a deer in headlights, and she ran over to Tony, patting him soothingly on the back. She didn't know what to do, and it scared her. She wasn't trained for this. Not to deal with these feelings...not to deal with...illness and health related problems.

Something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong. The plague…the plague…it was the plague. It was back. She grabbed one of Tony's hands, she didn't know why, she just did, and then squeezed it tightly in her own as his coughing started to die down.

"Tony." She firmly said, still rubbing circles into his back, "There is something wrong."

"Probably just allergies." He mumbled, standing up straight, "I'm fine." He said, looking her deep in the eyes before he started out of the kitchen, his shoulder brushing up against hers.

Ziva closed her eyes and leaned her head back, smacking it on the cabinet. _What was wrong with Tony? It's the plague, Ziva. Just admit it…but you don't want it to be true…not now. _

Tony started towards the bathroom. It wasn't that big of a deal. He hadn't started to cough up blood or anything. But he knew the look in her eyes. She was worried. Extremely worried. But this happens to all plague survivors, right? He ran a hand through his hair. There was nothing wrong with him. He was _fine. _Ziva didn't think so. But he needed to just get this…whatever it was…out of his system before Ziva got even more worried. (If that was even possible.) He needed to take those pills. _I don't have any damn allergies. _


	4. Coffee and Tea

**Before you read...a special thanks to C-Rok 0789 for helping me with this chapter! :) Thanks girl!**

After dinner, Ziva cleaned up the dishes before Tony intervened and promised her he would finish them. After much protest, he finally managed to get what he wanted, and he watched as she slinked off into the bedroom.

Half an hour later, Tony finished making himself a cup of coffee, stoked full of sugar, and a cup of tea from this package he found in one of the cabinets. He didn't know what flavor it was, but it had writing in Hebrew on it, so he figured that Ziva would like it.

Balancing one mug in each hand, filled with the steamy liquid, he walked into the bedroom. Ziva was sitting on the bed, this time dressed in sweats and a t-shirt, her legs bent as they were slightly brought up to her chest, a book lying on them. She had pulled her hair back, a couple of loose strands coming out from her bun and dangling in her face. She looked up immediately when he walked in and then back down at her book.

He walked over and took a seat next to her, the bed dipping down as he sat. He got comfortable, the bed shaking a little, and then handed her the mug filled with the piping hot liquid. She looked up at him and gave him a small smile as she took it, sipping it carefully. She gave a low 'mmm' in delight, showing to Tony that he did a good job as she took her sip, "Toda." She said before turning a page in her book.

Realizing that she was caught up in her book, he took a gulp of his coffee, liking the amount of sugar he put in, and then sat in silence for a while, the only sound the occasional turn of the page from Ziva's book.

He knew that he had to do something about this. She was extremely concerned. He had to prove to her that there was nothing to worry about. He was _fine. _He didn't feel like he did at all when he had the plague.

He turned to her the same time she turned to him, "We need to talk." They both said at the same time, and they both couldn't help but turn their lips up a little into a smile.

"You first." Ziva volunteered, closing her book and placing it on the beside table next to her. He sighed as she took a sip of her tea.

"Okay, look. I know that you're…concerned…"

"With your health." She finished.

"I'm fine, Ziva." He stared her deep in the eyes, "I am _fine._"

"Then how come you were so out of breath after you kissed me last night?" She demanded, turning towards him. She tapped her fingertips on the side of the mug.

He sighed, "Maybe that was just my adrenaline rising." He grinned, leaning closer towards her, whispering, "You tend to have that effect on me."

"Tony." She firmly said, "I think you should go to the Doctor."

"There's nothing wrong, Ziva." He leaned in closer to her, their faces just inches apart.

"Prove it." She murmured, her lips barely moving.

He grinned as he moved closer, "I will…" He saw her barely smirk as he closed his eyes and pressed his lips up against hers. She smiled against him as she moved closer towards him on the bed, the cup of tea still grasped in her hand. He wrapped his hand around her and pressed it against the back of her head, pulling her tighter against him as her mouth opened for him. Instead of pulling back when he opened his mouth, he just continued to make-out with her, even though his lungs were nearly burning by this point. As soon as she finally broke away, he attempted to keep his breathing down; He didn't want to worry her. He hated to see her so worried about nothing. She was a little out of breath, but she had a large smile on her face.

She studied him intently, "Mmmm…I was wrong. You are fine." She mused, her eyes still closed, a little dazed. The tea cup was threatening to fall out of her hands, and she reached back and set it down onto the bedside table.

"See?" He asked, trying desperately not to sound too out of breath, "I'm gonna take a shower. Then we'll go to bed.""Ah, your father, yes?" She asked, opening her eyes as she finally let go of him.

He simply nodded and then pressed a kiss on her forehead before getting out of bed and nearly running to the bathroom. He shoved the door closed behind him, turned on the light and the shower, and then started to nearly hyperventilate; he had barely been able to breathe out there. He slid down the door and landed on the floor, closing his eyes as he wheezed, desperately trying to get the air back into his lungs.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

By the time that Tony finished his shower, Ziva was lying in bed, on her back, staring at the ceiling, the covers pulled up to her neck, her eyes wide open. The light was still on as well. She turned her head as she looked at Tony. He was stark naked. She smirked a little as she watched the water drip from his hair and down his chest and back.

He just grinned as he crossed the room and dressed, "Tony?" She questioned, looking at him as he slipped on his boxers and a t-shirt before walking around the bed.

"Hmm?" He responded.

"Are your neighbors sick?" She questioned, tilting her head to the side. Tony stopped what he was doing and looked up at her.

"Excuse me?"

"Are. Your. Neighbors. Sick?" She asked, slowly, pronouncing every letter in the word for him.

He laughed a little as he walked towards the bed, "Well…they _are _a little twisted…" He grinned.

She propped herself up onto her elbows and turned to look at him as he climbed into bed, pulling the covers up over himself. She raised an eyebrow, "What?"

He paused a moment and then answered, "Never mind." He smiled, "Now stop worrying. It really is going to kill me." He laughed, "Goodnight, sweet cheeks." He cooed, leaning towards her and pressing his lips against hers in a short kiss. Even though she was pretty taken-back from the comment, she still kissed him back for the second it lasted, her eyes fluttering closed and then open.

"Goodnight." She mumbled as Tony flicked off the light and they crawled down into the covers. Before Tony could turn onto his side, her face was being thrown into his face, and she gripped him tightly, resting her head on his chest. He ran his arm up and down her back, memorizing the muscles that contracted in her back with her breathing, tugging at the strands that had come un-done from her bun as he let sleep overtake him.

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Neither one expected a call at 0200h in the morning, in fact, neither one of them wanted to groan about. But, after about the tenth time the person tried to call, Tony finally picked up his ringing cell.

"WHAT?" He demanded, screaming into the receiver as Ziva groaned and sat up with him, her head still resting against his chest, her eyes half-closed, mumbling incoherently to herself.

"_Umm…Tony? Hey, it's Aaron!"_

"Aaron?" Tony asked, in disbelief, and Ziva groaned as she left Tony's arms and threw herself down onto the pillow, "You do understand that it's like two in the morning here, dontcha?" he questioned, and even Ziva could hear Aaron gulp from the other end of the line.

"Oh. Hey….umm…well then I'll call you tomorrow. Tell Ziva I said 'Hi'…bye." And with that, he hung up the phone before Tony could say anything back. He looked down at Ziva but found that she was deeply asleep, her rhythmic breathing soothing and even her light snoring a little relaxing. He stroked her head once before he started to go back to sleep.

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Ziva woke up first, went for a jog, checked Tony's breathing, and then started to make the breakfast of the day; chocolate chip pancakes with maple syrup.

By the time that Tony woke up, at around 0700h, he started to cough, again, though the smell was very enticing. He once again turned his head into his pillow and coughed before getting out of bed and starting towards the door, ready to meet the chocolate pancakes.

The small, newly formed blood stain on his pillow went unnoticed.

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"Ziva I don't think I can do this." Tony sighed as they sat in Ziva's Mini Cooper, parked across the street of the coffee shop Tony was supposed to meet his dad at around 1500h.

"Of course you can, Tony." She reassured him, patting him lightly on the shoulder, "And I will be there, always in your sight, in case you need me, just like you requested, yes?"

"Thank you, Ziva." He said, softly.

"It is nothing. We shall go soon, yes? Your father will be here shortly." She opened up the door and started out when Tony grabbed onto her arm, stopping her. She turned slightly towards him, not saying anything, just speaking with her eyes.

"Am I making the right decision?" he asked, and Ziva just gave a small smile.

"If your father was Tali, I would give up everything to see her again." Tony's face fell as Ziva slinked out of his grip and closed the car door behind her. He hadn't meant to have brought Tali up. He knew it was a very sensitive topic for her. But she said she'd give up everything…did that mean…him as well? He didn't want to dwell on the topic. Especially since he was already meeting his real father. Ziva walked in first, ordered her tea, and then sat down precisely in the table behind the one that Tony was going to sit at. She read the paper (or looked like she was reading it), and then watched as Tony walked in, dashing as ever, and ordered his coffee, taking his seat at the table in front of hers, sitting on the other side so he could see her face. They shared a smile, speaking with their eyes as Tony took a sip of his coffee.

Ziva studied him. He looked distraught. He played with the sugar packet, tearing parts of it into little pieces on the table. She noticed that his hands were shaking. She almost wanted to go over there and wrap her arms around him, kiss him multiple times and tell him that everything was completely fine.

The door opened and she snapped her eyes up, noticing a man that was identical to the one that Tony ran into in the airport, sporting a suit. He looked a little lost. Ziva cleared her throat and Tony snapped his eyes up at her as she pretended to read the paper. She slyly looked up at Tony, focusing her eyes at the man in the doorway before looking back down at him.

Tony sat up a little straighter and De Luca recognized him. He started towards the table, and then his eyes met Ziva's. He winked at her and then took his seat in front of Tony. Ziva let her mouth drop to the ground, and Tony briefly wondered what Ziva was gaping about.

_Did he just…flirt with me?! _She angrily thought as she turned the page in newspaper, taking a sip of her tea as she listened to the conversation over the others.

The shook hands across the table, "Hey…Dad. Am I allowed to call you that?" He asked, "Or is it just De Luca?"

"De Luca is fine." He said, and Tony's face almost fell. He still managed to keep a small smile on his face. "So you're Anthony _DiNozzo_." He smirked, leaning back and crossing his arms, "You look so much like Caprice."

"My mother?"

"Yes, Anthony."

"Call me Tony." He said, and De Luca sighed.

"Why?" Tony was taken aback. So was Ziva. They shared a look over his Dad's shoulder.

"Why?" Tony asked, repeating the question. He was confused. _Why? _Why what? Why did he want to be called Tony? He laughed.

"Why should I call you Tony?"

"Because everyone calls me that. Though there is that rare occasion when my boss calls me Anthony…but that was like twice…and the Medical Examiner calls me Anthony almost all the time…"

"Ah, yes. You are _Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo,_ yes?" He asked, and Ziva didn't even bother reading the paper anymore. She just stared at Tony over his dads shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah, I worked Philadelphia PD for a while, and then Baltimore PD before coming to NCIS."

"NCIS?"

Tony laughed a little, "Yeah. Stands for Naval Criminal Investigative Service. Don't worry, I'm used to it."

"Used to what?"

"People not knowing what NCIS stands for."

"So what do you do?"

"Exactly what the title says; we investigate Naval crimes. Most of the time they're just fatalities, but sometimes they're breeches in security, violation of protocol, that sort of thing."

"Ah." His father said, nodding, taking in the new information, "So you have connections in high areas of the government then?"

"Yeah, I guess you could say that." Tony laughed, taking the moment to share a smile with Ziva. She smiled back. Truly, she was happy that Tony was finally getting to spend some time with his real Dad, and that he was actually semi-getting along with him. She still couldn't shake the small wink that he gave her though before he took his seat. But then again, she knew where Tony got it from.

"You married, Anthony?"

"You're not going to call me Tony, are you?" He laughed uneasily.

"Are you going to answer my question?" He fired back.

Tony sighed and looked down at the table. Suddenly it was very interesting to him. Ziva looked up and directly at Tony when she heard his father ask that question.

After contemplating for a little, he looked up at his Dad, looking him straight in the eyes, "I wish I was." He said, and Ziva suddenly stopped breathing. She looked at him with wide eyes, unable to determine anything. He wanted to _marry _her? Ziva David-DiNozzo? She…she couldn't believe it. He wanted that much in their relationship?

"You have found someone then, Anthony? That you love dearly?"

He took in a deep breath, but answered immediately, "Yes. My girlfriend and I have a…well we…"

"Living together?"

"Yes, sir." He nodded, and Ziva looked down at the paper, trying to digest this information. He wanted to get married to her…she hadn't even noticed that they were living together, she merely saw it as that she spent the night with him…every night…

"Then why don't you ask the question?"

"Why didn't you?" He fired back, "Why didn't you ask my mom? Why do I have to find out now who my real father is?" He demanded and De Luca looked down at the table, sighing.

"She cheated on me many times, Anthony. I just couldn't marry a woman like that."

"She may have been an alcoholic, _sir, _but she had a good heart…when she was sober."

He sighed and started to talk about why he didn't marry his mother, but Tony didn't really listen. His eyes were fixated on Ziva's, and hers were fixated on his; they were having one of their famous silent conversations.

"Anthony?" He asked, "Anthony?" He asked again, trying to figure out what had gotten him so distracted. He then turned around and saw Ziva's eyes matched to Tony's, but they quickly broke away from his as she looked down at the paper. De Luca turned around slowly, "Who was that? She is very beautiful." He commented, and then smirked, "You certainly don't have a chance with her. Mind if I give it a shot?"

And that was when Tony placed two hands on the table, his face suddenly murderous as he shoved the chair back, making crude noises on the ground as it did so. He leaned in close, "That, _sir, _is Ziva David." Ziva looked up at him as he said her name. She was confused, her eyes wide, almost in shock and fear at the same time. The next thing she knew, he was suddenly storming over to her and grabbing her by the hand, pulling her up out of the seat, the newspaper going flying all over the ground.

"Tony!" She hissed, "What are you doing?" But he didn't listen, he just tightly grabbed her hand and pulled her over to the table where his father still sat.

"She's _my _girlfriend. And you even think about laying a hand on her, I don't care if you're my father or not, I will _murder _you, got that?" He demanded, loudly, the entire coffee shop stopping and staring at them in shock. Ziva just stared, utterly frozen in a state of stupefaction by Tony's words. She didn't have time to think as Tony wrapped his arm around her waist, securing her to his hip as he steered her out of the café, everyone inside staring after them.

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**Okay, so I know what you're thinking…THIS MAKES NO SENSE. But trust me, it will. When something big happens to Tony and Ziva doesn't know what to do. And that's when everything is going to happen. Remember, Tony gets out of breath when he and Ziva kiss…hmmm…remember that. And there's blood on the pillow, and he and his father just got into a fight and…Aaron's called. So yeah. Review if you want to know what's going to happen next! Sorry for the delay, I went to a hockey game last night! Review please! (BTW...I think this is my longest chapter yet!) OH! And Gibbs and the rest of the NCIS team will be in the next chapter! So review for them too! You know what? Just review! Please! They make my day!  
**


	5. Blood

**So this chapter is kinda bordering that 'M' rating. But please enjoy!**

Ziva kept her distance from Tony, or attempted to. She lingered behind, and she felt the occasional yank on her hand to keep her up with his pace, his grip on her hand tightening ever so tightly as he pulled her up the stairs to his apartment.

_Where they lived together. _She almost sighed. She hadn't even thought of it like that. It had been a gradual process. She would spend the nights with him only when they were having sex, but then it gradually increased, starting with the toothbrush she kept at his apartment for the morning after (they normally only did it on Friday's or weekends when they knew that they didn't have work the next day), and then it just kept going up and up.

Next was an extra pair of clothes for when they had comfort sex after tough cases…or every case. Soon she forgot a couple of clothes, Tony mixed them in with his wash (which he did every Monday and Wednesday nights), and then, somehow, a couple of her necessities eventually became left there such as her own deodorant, her shampoo, her razor, and her limited amount of make-up that she wore for special occasions.

Then a couple of her favorite things such as her teddy bear that she'd gotten for her third birthday (which her father had threaten to burn if she didn't sell it, for it 'got in the way of her training'), and a quilt that had been passed down for generations ended up there as well.

And then the sex went away, and all they wanted to do was watch movies, sip coffee and tea, the occasional bottle of wine thrown in there, and cuddle up on the couch as Tony did his impression of Sean Connery (no matter what the movie). And then…then she spent every moment in his apartment until Tony decided to have movie nights are her apartment. Eventually some of his things were moved over to hers…

Then there was the resignation, and from then on, Ziva hadn't left his apartment. She honestly didn't know the last time that they had been in her apartment…or she had. She wondered what on earth it was going to smell like…the food in there must have been rancid by now. She grimaced that the thought and felt bad for her neighbors.

But, now, as Tony pulled her into the apartment and closed the door, he suddenly let go of her and stormed into the kitchen. She followed him and leaned up against the side of the refrigerator, staring at him. He had his eyes shut, his body slid down the cabinet and sitting on the ground, his head thrown back against the wood, his knees pulled slightly up, his hands resting on top of them.

Not saying anything, she walked over to him and sat down next to him, staring at him for a little. He didn't open his eyes or even acknowledge her presence next to him. She stared at him a while, a good ten minutes at least, before she spoke, "Tony?" She softly questioned, and he didn't answer or open his eyes. He just gave a small, confirming murmur that barely escaped his lips, "Are you okay?"

"Why am I such a bastard, Ziva?"

She nearly gaped, in fact, she thought she did, "What?" She asked, surprised, "You are no bastard, Tony. If you were, I would have shot you a long time ago." She let out a small laugh and even Tony turned one side of his lip up in a smile before he quickly let it fade.

"Well my father's a bastard. Must be where I get it from." He said, a statement, not a question.

"You are not a bastard." She repeated again, "If anyone is a bastard, it is Gibbs." She laughed, and Tony smiled a little.

"Well yeah, he did say that the second 'B' in his name is for 'bastard'."

"And you do not have a 'B' in your name. DiNozzo _or _De Luca." He still let his smile drop and Ziva couldn't help but mimic the expression.

"He acts just like me, Ziva."

"No he does not." She disagreed, "You have never winked at me." She pointed out, and Tony snapped his eyes open, this time burning with anger.

"He did _WHAT?!" _

"Tony!" Ziva commanded, grabbing onto his shoulder as he tried to get off of the ground, "Calm down. It was nothing, really."

"No, Ziva. You are my girlfriend and I…and I called him! I set this up! I'm such a bastard!" He kicked the floor angrily, banging his head back against the cabinet again, his eyes shutting quickly.

She sighed and got up off of the floor, surprising Tony. She crossed towards the refrigerator and opened the freezer, pulling out a container and then walking over and pulling out two spoons. She took his seat back next to him and pulled the lid off, offering him some and a spoon. He opened his eyes curiously and gave a smile as he noticed his favorite ice cream staring up at him. Chocolate. Ziva took her spoon and dipped it in the substance, pulling some out as she placed it close to his face. He ate it in delight, and he couldn't help but keep the smile on his face. She fed him another one, watching as some melted ice cream dripped down his chin. She ran the spoon up his chin and then back into his mouth. She chuckled lightly as he picked up the other spoon and started to feed himself.

Ziva took the spoon that she was using the feed Tony and dipped it into the ice cream before placing it too in her mouth. They sat in silence, eating the ice cream before Ziva decided that she had had enough. It was about two hours since then, and the ice cream was starting to melt. Tony placed the lid on the container and glanced at the clock. It was almost 01800h, and his stomach was growling for some real food. She put the ice cream away and then bent down and placed a kiss on the top of his head. She positioned both of her hands so that one was on one side of his face and the other was on his other as she bent down and pulled his face up to meet hers.

"You are not a bastard." She whispered, kissing him again, "Come on." She said, softly, "Let us go and get dinner. Out to eat, my treat."

He stood up and composed himself, "Let me grab my jacket." She nodded as she walked into the living room, grabbed her keys, and turned off the light, pulling on her jacket in the process. As soon as they were about to go out the door, Tony stopped her and shoved the door closed. She looked up at him.

"What?" She asked, confused.

He took a moment to respond and then he nervously, a little laugh in his voice, smiled down at her, "I love you, Ziva."

She didn't respond, she just gave a small smile as she opened the door and walked out of the apartment, Tony trailing her, a little disappointed. _It was just abrupt, Tony. Don't worry about it. If she didn't love you, then she wouldn't be living with you…_

He tried to convince himself, but in the back of his mind, he had one small thought that doubted the entire thing.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Gibbs sat in his basement, staring at his boat. He wanted to work on it, he really did, but he just kept seeing his senior field agents face.

He was slightly different, in good and bad ways at the same time. He looked older, more mature, which was good, but he also looked paler and like he wasn't getting much for his well being.

He knew that he and Ziva were probably catching up from the last two months that he was gone, but he hadn't expected him to look so…unhealthy.

He sighed. Something was wrong. He didn't know what…and then Ziva getting all worried? And her confession about the medical file? He reached over for his jar of nuts and bolts and dumped then out, his cell phone falling out in the process.

Turning it over, he closed his eyes and racked his brain for the number before punching it in.

"Yeah, this is Special Agent Gibbs of NCIS….look Dr. Pitt, I just wanted to ask you a couple of questions….yeah," He sighed and turned around, leaning back a little, "How common is it for the plague to come back?"

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

By the time that they had gotten back home, Tony was full, happy, and had completely forgotten about his confession before they left. Well not completely, it just wasn't what he was thinking about at the moment. However, there was a little something that made Tony feel nauseous, but he didn't know what it was. In fact, he almost felt like he wasn't even in this world at sometimes. Figuring it probably was just a dash of food poisoning from the chicken that he and Ziva shared, he shrugged it off.

They started up the stairs, side by side, their hands clasped tightly together, to Tony's apartment. Once inside, they pulled off their jackets before Tony turned slowly towards her. She looked up at him and then, without any words needed at all, he crashed his lips down against hers. She moaned and the kiss started to heat up as she pulled him towards the bedroom by the tie. He reached his hand up under her shirt and unhooked her bra as they finally made it into the bedroom. Tony kicked the door shut and Ziva started with his tie, pulling it undone as she started for the buttons, nearly ripping them off as she slid the shirt over his shoulders. It fell immediately to the floor as he pulled hers off over her head, discarding it as well. They were both bare-chested as Tony ran his hands up and down the muscles in her back while she worked with is belt buckle. She pulled his pants down and he reached his hands into her cargo pants, his fingers looping around the strings of her panties. He got them undone as they fell into a pool by her feet. He picked her up and dumped her onto the bed, both laughing a little out of breath (Tony more so, but he didn't care at this point.) As long as he didn't breathe too hard, as to arise suspicion, he was fine. He had waited to do this for…oh god, he didn't even _know _the last time they made love.

And that scared him.

She was lying on the bed, her legs spread slightly, her hair spooling all over the bed as he hovered above her, staring her deep in the eyes as he wrapped one hand around the back of her head and tangled it into her dark brown locks.

"I have been waiting two months for this…" Ziva moaned, and Tony kicked off his shoes as he placed a kiss on her lips.

"You ready, sweetheart?" He murmured, placing kisses down her neck. She screamed out.

"Damn it, Tony." She muttered before he finally managed to keep his breathing down. He held his breath as he entered her, causing her to start to scream. As not to wake the six year old next door, who was probably asleep by now, he placed his lips firmly against hers, picking up a firm rhythm, their bodies synced together as they rolled around on the bed.

Tony's lungs were _on fire. _He didn't possibly think he could take it anymore, but he knew that he had to. One, if he didn't, it would make Ziva even more worried about him, which he didn't want, and two, it would ruin the one good thing that he'd waited two months for. Her. And not just her in bed. But her. Loving him. Making _love. _It wasn't having sex anymore. It hadn't been that even from the beginning.

He didn't even notice that he slowed down, or that he was barely moving, but all he knew was that his lungs were on fire.

And he couldn't take it anymore. He had a decision to make out of two. One, just keep going and probably pass out due to the lack of air that is able to get to his lungs, or two, bolt to the window in an attempt to get air back through him.

Knowing that option number one would probably worry Ziva more, he did the one thing he didn't want to do; he ran.

He didn't even give her a warning, he just jumped off of her as if she was a hot plate, fell off the bed in a large boom as he sprinted towards the window, tripping many times. He could hear her calling his name as he fumbled with the latch on the window, his breathing terribly ragged, his vision a little blurry. He finally yanked the window open just a little before he started to cough.

Ziva didn't know what to do. Tony's head was jammed up in the window, he was gasping for air, and he was coughing like you wouldn't believe. _And…_he hadn't finished. He hadn't given her a warning either, he just…jumped up and left.

She jumped off of the bed, completely naked, and bent down next to him, patting his back. Her heart was beating uncontrollably. What could she do? She wasn't trained for this…for any of this…she honestly didn't know what to do. "Tony, Tony." She soothed him, but he just continued to cough, it only getting worse before she watched a small stream of blood come out of the side of his mouth as he finally stopped, his breathing still ragged.

She stared at him with wide eyes. She was scared for his life. She was. There was no way that this could be taken away from her. Weren't they just laughing at dinner? "I have to call Gibbs, Tony." She said, standing up and hurrying over to her pants to grab out her phone.

"No.." He breathed out, stopping her in her tracks. She turned, "Why not? Tony!" She scolded, "This is serious! I must tell Gibbs!"

"I don't want him…" He coughed again, "To know…_Ziva._" He whispered out, and Ziva just grabbed out her phone and ran over to him.

"Tony!" She shouted, and he slumped up against the side of the window, "Tony, please! You have to trust me! Gibbs cares for you, he cares for us. Please, Tony."

"No…don't…call him." He breathed out, his eyes fluttering closed.

"Tony, you must stay awake." She demanded, tapping him lightly on the side of the cheek. He immediately woke up, but then let his eyes and head slightly droop. She tapped his lightly again, "Tony. Let me call Gibbs."

"No." He said again, "Call…Ducky…"

Ziva nodded and breathed as she dialed his number. At least Tony let _someone _help him. She tapped his cheek lightly again as the phone rang.

"_Ah, Ziva!" _he cheerfully said.

"Ducky, no time to talk. Get down to Tony's apartment. Now."

"_At this late hour?" _He asked, checking the clock. It was almost midnight, "_What's the problem?"_

She looked at Tony again and then tapped his cheek, forcing him to wake up, "Ducky just get down here." She let out a deep, shaky breath as she snapped the phone shut and then discarded it onto the ground. She then grabbed a bathrobe and pulled it around her as she walked around her partner and threw his arm around her shoulder, bringing him up off of the ground. She limped towards the door as she helped him pull his boxers on, breathing over and over again, getting worse the entire time. As she helped him out of the bedroom, he collapsed in the doorframe, gripping onto the edges, "Can't…breathe…" He whispered out, his breath catching in his throat as he toppled onto the ground, completely weak. Ziva couldn't bring him back up, for he was much too heavy for her, she simply bent down and noticed the beads of sweat falling down his face.

Since they were near the bathroom, she hurried in and grabbed the damp washcloth from Tony's shower last night and pressed it against his forehead, trying to cool him down. He just continued to rasp his breathing, causing her to become even more concerned for him.

"Ducky, hurry." She muttered a pray to herself as she watched Tony try to fall asleep again. She tapped him again on the cheek startling him as she heard the door open quickly. She let herself relax a little as Ducky came running in, Medical Bag in hand.

"Sorry I am late, my dear I…" He spotted Tony as he rounded the corner.

He didn't even bend down to look at him, "Call the paramedics." He demanded, and that definitely wasn't a good sign for Ziva.

She looked up at the doctor with scared eyes, even Ducky could see the fear, "What?" She asked, not wanting it to be true.

"My dear, call an ambulance!" He shouted, and Ziva hurried back into the bedroom to pick up her phone and dial 911. When she returned, Ducky quickly grabbed her hand, pulling her away from Tony.

"What are you doing?" She demanded, "Ducky." She firmly said, "Tony needs us."

"Ziva…do you not understand, my dear?" He questioned as she heard the sound of sirens softly in the background. They were about three minutes away. She just stared at the Scottish man in front of her as he put both hands on her shoulders, shaking her once lightly, "Dear Anthony has contracted the pneumonic plague…again."

Ziva turned away from the doctor, letting the words sink in.

The plague.

_You knew it was coming, Ziva. You knew it._ She angrily thought.

_Everything pointed to it._

However, no matter how much she prepared herself for it, she never pictured a scene as horrible as the one Tony was in at the moment. Barely able to breathe, his arms and legs spread out in all directions around him, his head slumped to the side….she couldn't help but let one lone tear roll down her cheek.


	6. Contract

**Special, special thanks to C-Rok. Again. : ) Enjoy!**

Ziva David couldn't control the world around her. Everything happened so fast. First, the paramedics came rushing into their apartment, shouting orders at each other. Then Ducky brought her some clothes, she got dressed hurriedly, in a daze, and then started out of the door.

She wasn't allowed in the ambulance. They didn't want her to get infected by Tony. While she was being shown out of the apartment, Ducky's arm wrapped loosely around her shoulder, Tony's neighbors were all crawling out of their door frames, mothers shoving their sons back in, some of them sending Ziva sad, hopeful, loving looks. She just continued on. And out of the corner of her eye, she swore she saw the familiar head of hair that was in fact Leroy Jethro Gibbs, getting quickly back into his yellow car and then driving off after the ambulance, but she couldn't be sure.

Ducky drove her to the hospital, the car ride silent as she tried desperately to convince herself that he was okay.

Too bad it didn't work.

Once she got there, McGee was already there. He was standing outside of a glass rectangle with many beds, the words 'Isolation Ward' and 'Biohazard' written on signs as the only light were blue lights, shining down.

"Ziva…" McGee let his heart break a little when he saw her face, and he went to hug her when she put one hand up, pushing him away.

"No." She simply said, "McGee. No." He nodded, understanding.

"He just got here."

She just nodded, and then started towards the door when Pitt noticed her and walked towards her. He was dressed in gloves, a mask, lab coat, everything was covered up.

"Ziva. Tony is…"

"I have to see him." She demanded, and Pitt sighed.

"Look, Ziva."

"I must see him, Dr. Pitt. And if I do not…"

"You will." He put his hands up, stopping her as she started to move past him. She sighed and stopped as he pulled his mask down, "After you answer a couple of questions for me."

"About why you will not let me see Tony?"

He sighed. _This isn't going anywhere! _"Okay…so when was the first time that you saw symptoms that he may have contracted the plague again?"

She winced at the word, "Two days ago." She nodded, "Maybe three. I do not honestly know."

"And what was the catalyst for the strongest plague symptoms?" She just stared at him, letting a small blood rush to her cheeks. He blinked and then realized that she probably didn't know what he said. He rephrased it, "What was the last thing he did before he started to hyperventilate?"

She let the heat rush to her cheeks, "Me." She simply said, "Now may I go and see Tony?" She attempted to push past him again when he stopped her. Again. She huffed, "Dr. Pitt." She firmly said, "I am a Mossad Assassin. I suggest that you let me go."

He sighed and then pulled out his walkie, pressing the button, "Yeah, this is Pitt. I need a specimen jar."

She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, "Specimen jar? For what?"

"We just need you to pee in a cup. To collect your urine."

"Why?" She demanded.

He ran a hand through his hair, "You may have contracted the plague as well." A doctor approached him before Ziva could say anything else, and he extended his hand containing the jar towards her.

She snatched it from his hand and then started away. If it meant that she was allowed to see Tony, she sure as hell hoped she had the plague.

Brad watched as Ziva stormed away before the silver haired man walked towards him, "Agent Gibbs." He recognized, almost a little relieved. He liked Ziva, truly, he did, but sometimes…he wondered just how deadly the little beauty could be.

"What happened?" Gibbs demanded, shoving his hands into his pockets as he stared at the doctor and the doctor only. He loved his senior field agent. He admitted that. Maybe not as much as Ziva, more of a son that he never had, but if he was gone…he didn't honestly know if he could take it. He could barely take it when he had the plague before. But if he was gone? He and Ziva would probably take out the entire DC metropolitan area.

"He contracted the pneumonic plague again, Agent Gibbs."

"I know that, damn it." He muttered, "How?" He demanded, and Brad just stuttered.

"Well…we don't exactly know…"

"Why not?!" He fired. What the hell was he doing here if he didn't know how his senior field agent contracted the disease…again?

"We're still running tests…"

"Run them faster! Tony may not have enough time!" He shouted, pointing to the man in the blue lighted, glass room.

Brad just nodded as he hurried off. Jethro walked towards the cube, getting as close as he could to him. Tony had many tubes attached to him, starting at his nose, a couple of IV needles stuck in his arm, his chest rising and descending in large amounts. His eyes fluttered closed and then open, the machines beeping. He was alone. Tony DiNozzo was alone.

Gibbs heard the sound of the door close behind him, and he turned around to see a rather pissed off Ziva walk towards him.

"Ziver…" Gibbs started, softly. She may have looked angry, may have tried to look tough, but he knew that she was nearly dying inside. Her eyes gave it all away.

"Not now, Gibbs." She demanded, and he tried to grab her, but she snatched her arm quickly away as she walked by him, as if she was ready for his attempt, and she threw open the door and walked into the unit.

Gibbs watched through the glass as her expression immediately softened, her entire body softening as she stopped in front of the door for a moment or two. She then crossed towards Tony's bed and stopped by it. Tony mouthed her name, and she let a small, closed smile cross her face as she grabbed his hand in both of hers. He looked as if he was struggling to form words, and Ziva crouched down next to his bed, causing him to sit up a little. Gibbs watched his face wince in pain, and even he could tell that Ziva was concerned. He just had a way in seeing it.

Tentatively, she raised one hand, bringing it out of Tony's loose grip, and then pushed a strand of hair out of his face, smiling sadly at him as she placed her hand on the side of his cheek.

Gibbs felt as if he was spying, and it almost made him feel a little awkward and…embarrassed? He felt as if he was peeping, or, as Tony would say, a peeping _Tom, _and he almost turned around to give them some privacy before he watched, out of the corner of his eye, Ziva's lips press up against his.

And that was when the gut alarm went off.

His eyes and entire body went on red alert as he quickly started to knock on the glass. Ziva and Tony both ignored it, and he threw the door open, "ZIVA!" He shouted, and she broke away from him, letting go of all of him as she turned in confusion at Gibbs. Gibbs grabbed her arm and yanked her out of the isolation ward.

He knew that that was the wrong thing to do.

She huffed as Tony turned his head slightly to the side to watch their conversation, which he could clearly hear, for they were screaming. So he guessed that it wasn't a conversation, but it was more of an _argument. _Yes, that was it.

"Gibbs!" She shouted, "What? Now is not the time to give me a lecture on rule twelve. You wanted to give us one of those, then you should have come to me a long time ago, Gibbs." She scoffed, laughing bitterly as she paced angrily in front of him.

"Ziva, you could contract the plague!" He yelled, "Damn it!"

"I am not going to get the plague. I am a strong person, Gibbs." She shouted back.

"So you're saying that Tony isn't strong?"

"He is strong!" She screamed, "But Tony was not trained by Mossad!"

"Just because your Mossad doesn't mean…"

"I would know!"

"You knew about Tony getting the plague back before?" She just sighed and stopped pacing.

"Look, Gibbs." She put a hand up, but he stopped her, causing her to gape slightly.

"When?" He demanded, walking angrily towards her.

"A couple of days ago."

"Why didn't you tell_ me_?"

She paused a moment before answering, "Tony did not want me to." She said, simply, shrugging her shoulders.

"I could have helped him, Ziva! We could have gotten him some damn medical attention! Now it might be too late!" He then noticed, after he said it, that he probably shouldn't have. Ziva's eyes, still red alert, turned towards Tony's, who couldn't move fast enough to look away.

"It is not too late." She muttered, angrily, back at Gibbs once she focused her eyes back on his, "Tony will be able to f-fight…" She then felt a strange feeling in her throat as she started to cough. This time it was Gibbs who became on red alert. He grab her shoulders, shaking them once…twice…before she finally stopped. He looked down into her eyes.

"Ziver?" He questioned, "Are you okay?"

She just nodded, "I am fine." she started to walk away when she felt Jethro's grip on her arm. She turned back to him, "Just…allergies." She took Tony's excuse as she pulled out, shared a look with Tony, and then started back out through the double doors. _Damn it, David. _

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Abby came later, crying with a Jimmy Palmer holding a box of tissues behind her, an unopened one under his other arm as Abby blew her nose in the one she was holding in her hands.

She came straight over to Gibbs, who was sitting outside of the ward. Ziva had disappeared almost an hour ago, and he honestly didn't know where she went. He had meant to follow her, but then again…that probably wasn't the best idea either. He'd seen Ziva cry once before, and that was when _he _was in the hospital, not Tony. He didn't think that he could possibly see her cry again. It was one of the saddest things he'd ever seen in his life.

"Gibbs!" Abby cried, "Gibbs, tell me it's not true! Please tell me it's not true!" She wined as Gibbs stood up and just took her in his arms as she cried into his black jacket sported over his red polo and white undershirt.

"I wish I could, Abs." He whispered, hugging her tighter.

"But it's _Tony! _He fought it once, can't he fight it again?" She demanded, pulling back but not letting Gibbs out of her arms, "Oh Gibbs I don't know how much more of this I can take. First there's Tony…r-r-resigning, and then that e-evil Lynn…and then his real D-Dad…and then this? Tony, Tony…Tony!" She wailed, snatching a tissue out of Jimmy's hands before blowing her nose again into it.

"Agent Gibbs?" He suddenly heard, and Gibbs turned around to come face to face with Dr. Brad Pitt.

He just stared at him.

He cleared his throat, "A word?" Gibbs just stared at him again, "Privately?" Gibbs patted Abby once and then placed a kiss on the side of her cheek as McGee came walking up, a cup of coffee in one hand. Abby threw her arms around McGee, the hot liquid flying all over the white floors.

"Well…" He managed to breathe out, "There goes the coffee." He laughed a little, and Gibbs smirked at both the attempt at humor and the position he was in before he follow Brad away from the rest of his team and the rest of the hospital. Gibbs just stared at him, once again.

"Urine tests came back…" He took in a deep breath, showing the test on his clipboard, "Positive."

"For what?" Gibbs asked, furrowing his eyebrows together.

"The plague." Brad blinked, confused now.

Gibbs pointed towards the Isolation ward, "You already know that Tony has contracted the plague again."

"These aren't Tony's."

"Then whose are they?"

He took in another deep breath, "Look, Agent Gibbs. I…"

"Whose are they?" He demanded, this time getting angry.

"I couldn't do anything, honestly, I couldn't."

"WHOSE ARE THEY?!" He shouted, and Brad sighed again.

"Ziva."

Gibbs felt his entire heart nearly stop. Not two. And anyone but Ziva. Gibbs just stood there, blinking for a little, unaware of what to say, "How?" He managed to squeak out. _Squeak. _Yes, that's right. Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs _squeaked. _

"The pneumonic plague can be contracted in many ways…"

"How about how the hell my Mossad _Liaison _Officer contracted it? You know that?"

"Face-to-face contact." He simply said, "And she said that they were having sexual intercourse when he had the final takeover of pneumonic plague through his system."

Gibbs just blinked, unaware of what to say. He honestly didn't know. He ran a hand through his hair and then walked away. What the hell was he going to say to Ducky? McGee? Abby? …_Tony? _

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Gibbs was handed a mask by another doctor (Pitt had gone to look for Ziva, to get her under medical treatment as fast as possible), as he walked into the Biohazard of the Isolation Ward.

"Ziva?" Tony muttered out, his voice cracking and barely audible with his heavy breathing.

"Nope." He said, simply, and Tony nodded, leaning back down onto the pillow, for he was trying to look up and see who it was.

"Boss." He said, "Where's Ziva?"

"She's fine." He said, because it was the truth. Right now she was fine. She wouldn't be for long but…the thought unnerved him. Damn it, he loved them. He could hardly bare it when one agent had the plague. Now two?

"Can I see her?"

"You will soon." He nodded. Again, the truth.

"Is she okay?"

He sighed and moved towards him, "Tony…" He started, "How is the best way to say this?"

"What?" He muttered out, moving his head slightly to see him. Gibbs took in the slight tinge of blue that his nose was taking. He sighed.

"She's contracted the plague, Anthony." He said, softly, looking down before looking up at him to see his reaction.

He just turned his head back to look up at the sky. Gibbs swore he saw a tear brimming in his eyelids. He blinked it away. Gibbs almost didn't want him to cry, but he knew that he truly loved Ziva. And that she truly loved him.

"Cry." He simply said, softly, "You're not saying sorry, so it's not a sign of weakness. And, to be honest, you're pretty damn weak right now."

"DiNozzo men don't cry." He protested, and Gibbs shook his head, not believing the lie; he saw the tears that were threatening to fall out of his eyes.

"You're not a DiNozzo, Tony…it's okay. You can cry," Gibbs said, softly as he watched his senior field agent's bottom lip quiver. He shut his eyes tightly closed as he shook his head back and forth in protest, "I can't…I ca….ca…"

Gibbs just stared at him. Tony couldn't breathe. He couldn't even concentrate for all he could think of was how _he _was the one that made her sick. _He_ was the one that gave her the death disease. _He _was the one that kissed her over and over again. _He_ was the one that gave it to her. _He _was the one to blame. _He_ shouldn't be allowed to live. _He_ had put…_her…_(he didn't dare say her name)…into such horrible pain. She would go through hell; she wasn't strong enough. She may look it on the outside, she may put out that persona, but Tony knew her. He saw the insides that he had come to love just as much as the outside, or, perhaps, even more. He knew she was just as vulnerable as anyone when it came to any sort of weakness.

"DiNozzo men don't cry…" He managed to breathe out as he let his tears fall silently down his face.

"Until now." Gibbs whispered as he stared at his senior field agent. Never before had he seen him cry. It almost made Gibbs want to as well. And all Tony could think was one thing:

_I'm such a bastard. _

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

**Sorry for not updating yesterday, and I'm sorry if I rushed it a little. And sorry I know like NOTHING on medical stuff. : ) hehehe. And sorry if the characters seem OOC. : ( I honestly don't mean to! Please review though and sorry for the wait! **


	7. Rejection

Tony couldn't even look at her as Brad came into the room, Ziva in tow. She had been forced to change out of her other clothes and was put into blue satin pajamas. They were identical to the ones that he was wearing, except hers were baggy and fit loosely to her body. He closed his eyes and pretended he was asleep, though it wasn't hard to. He wanted to go to sleep so badly. He was _tired, _and he honestly couldn't understand why. It was probably due to all the silent tears that had fallen down his face when he found out that he was the reason for Ziva's illness.

"Which bed would you like, Ziva?" Pitt asked, and she chose the one closest to Tony. He pretended not to feel guilty as he kept his eyes shut.

"This one, please." She chose. Brad went around to help her, but she pushed him away, insisting that she could do it herself. Tony figured that she had crawled into bed, for there wasn't anymore noise; the only noise came from the faint beeping of the machines that he was attached to.

_And soon Ziva would as well. _

He threw the thoughts back as he heard Pitt speak again, "Agent DiNozzo is sleeping, Ziva so-"

"Be quiet, yes, I know." She responded, lying back in the bed, closing her eyes.

"We just need to run a couple of tests before we start injecting antibiotics."

"Why?" She demanded, glancing over at Tony for just a couple of milliseconds before turning back to Doctor Pitt, "Just because I have a sexual relationship with Tony?"

He sighed. Did he really have the heart…the audacity…to tell her the truth? She _was _a highly trained Mossad assassin…. "Just precautions." He nodded, and then started out of the room as a nurse walked in. Ziva couldn't tell her hair color in the blue lights, but she had darker hair and a white dress on, as normal. She too, like Dr. Pitt, had a mask covering her face.

"Hi, are you Ziva David?" She asked, looking down at the clipboard.

"Yes." She nodded, "What?"

"I'm just going to have to take a sample of your blood." She said, "And then take your temperature, your heart pressure, the entire ordeal." She smiled, "I'm Stacey, but the way."

Ziva just nodded as Stacey snapped on a pair of gloves before grabbing a small, damp cloth and rubbing it on part of Ziva's exposed skin on her arm, "I do not see how this is necessary."

Stacey just gave a small smirk, "It's necessary." She reassured her as she watched Ziva's eyes wander towards Tony's. As she was getting the needle ready and sterilized, she gave a small smile.

"He's your boyfriend, isn't he?" She asked her, and Ziva just snapped her head away from her partner. She didn't answer, and, once again, Stacey smirked, "Either that's a yes or you just love him." She grinned, and, noticing that Ziva wasn't going to answer, she warned her that she was going to take the blood before she took it. Right before the needle penetrated her skin, one of Tony's machines started going haywire, beeping all over the place as Tony's chest started to rise and fall even harder and more rapidly than before. Ziva's eyes glazed over in terror as she watched him cry out, trying desperately to breathe as he tried to bury his face into the pillow.

Stacey started shouting immediately dropping the needle as she ran towards Tony, "Pitt!" she yelled, "I need Doctors in here, pronto!" She barked as Ziva started to see Pitt as well as some other unknown doctors run out of the double doors and towards the isolation rectangle, pulling on masks as they came running in. Stacey was trying to calm him, "Smith, isolate and pump oxygen through his system. He needs more. He's losing significant amounts quickly." Smith nodded and then turned a knob just slightly. Tony calmed down a little, but he was still crying out in pain. They tried to keep him steady as Stacey continued to shout orders, "Inject morphine between the two muscular tissues in the forearm. High dosage. Now!" She demanded as a couple of doctors held him down before injecting a needle full of morphine into his arm. He immediately stopped thrashing and the doctor's sighed.

Ziva had to turn away about halfway through. She couldn't look. There was no way that she could watch the man that she had given herself to just…be so helpless. He was the one that she thought was the strongest, and he was the one that just…she just couldn't watch.

Pitt noticed this and walked over to her, bending down next to her. She felt a little woozy, in fact, she felt insanely woozy, but she just blamed it on Tony.

"Yes?" She asked, unsure of what else to say. She noticed hat her voice was slightly cracking. How dare she! She wasn't trained to show an weakness. None. And that was _definitely _a weakness.

"You okay?" She just nodded as she let out a cough and then a couple more, feeling weaker after the last couple of coughs that she took. She leaned her head back, almost as if it wasn't attached and nodded.

"I am fine…" She breathed out, and then, once Pitt gave the doctors orders to figure out why Tony had…whatever just happened…he went away.

Ziva turned onto her side, her back facing Tony.

She couldn't look at Tony.

What if he woke up and saw her cry?

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

About two hours later, maybe more, Gibbs was sitting in the lobby, unaware of the time or why he didn't want to know. All he knew was that this was his…twelfth, no thirteenth cup of coffee in the day.

And he hadn't expected him to show up that quickly. I mean, it was pretty much someone he didn't want to see at the moment, considering that his nerves were raw and very on edge. Two of his agents. _Two. _

"Where is my son?" Anthony De Luca demanded, and Gibbs just sighed as he started up at the Italian man in front of him.

"In the isolation ward." He simply said, looking up at him.

He huffed and closed his eyes for a moment, "I need to see my son."

"Yeah, well, you've known you had a son for what…two days? Maybe three? You can't see him."

"Does it matter, Agent…?"

"Gibbs." He finished.

"Agent Gibbs. Does it matter? He is still my son no matter what." Gibbs groaned.

"Look." He said, pointing towards the isolation room, "Tony doesn't want to see you."

"Well then maybe you can give him a message for me? Or maybe…Ziva could do it? It is Ziva, yes?" Gibbs noticed the little twinkle in his eye when he said his Mossad Liaison's name. Gibbs leaned back in his chair.

_Oh no. So that's what the hell DiNozzo was getting worked up about when I mentioned his father….damn it, Tony. _

"Ziva's contracted the plague as well."

He watched the sparkle drop, "How?" He demanded.

"From Tony."

There was a moment or two of silence that passed before he spoke again, "I have to see him." He firmly said, "To make sure that my son is all right. Caprice would like to know that I saw him."

"Well if Caprice wants to know so damn bad, why didn't _she_ come down here?"

"Caprice and I have not spoken in nearly forty years, Agent Gibbs." He demanded, looking straight into Gibbs blue ones as he stood up.

"Yeah, well, ever think that maybe that's why Tony doesn't want to see you?"

"No. Tony will want to see me. And so will Ziva…" He had the glitter in his eyes again, and Gibbs had to restrain himself from completely decking the man. He was Tony's father, yes, but Gibbs felt as if he was more of a father figure to DiNozzo than anyone in his life. And Ziva…Ziver…he was probably more of a father to her than Eli was. At least, he would like to think that, and for her to think that as well.

"My agents are not going to see you, Mr. De Luca. I suggest that you leave. Unless you would like me to escort you out myself."

"Just let me see him, for a moment, Agent Gibbs!" He shouted, and then shoved past him and into the double doors to the Isolation Ward.

Gibbs huffed and turned on his heel, his icy blue eyes piercing the doors that were just swinging shut, "I hate lawyers." He mumbled under his breath as he followed him in. _Now I know where DiNozzo gets his lack of respect for authority from. _

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Ziva couldn't believe that her entire Mossad training had turned off just because she was a little sick, for she had to turn in order to realize that _he _was there.

And by _he _she meant Anthony De Luca.

She shuddered just slightly, and Tony fluttered his eyes open a little, straining to turn his neck towards her, "Hey. Ziva." He managed to rasp out. He had woken up about a half-hour ago, from the morphine injection.

"Yes?" She asked, turning towards him.

"Is that my Dad?"

She winced at the sound of 'Dad'. That man was definitely not his father, "Yes." She nodded, taking in a deep breath as she said it.

"Oh." He simply said, turning back up to look at the ceiling, "I don't want to see him."

"I know, Tony." She simply said.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Gibbs _really _didn't expect anyone else to show up. _Especially _not Director Leon Vance, storming in with his cell phone in one hand, closed, and a sheet of paper in the other.

Gibbs stood next to Anthony De Luca, making sure that he didn't go inside as Stacey, Brad, and another doctor were getting ready to administer IV and antibiotics to Ziva's body. Tony coughed a couple of times, and each time, Gibbs winced. Ziva's coughs were definitely louder and harsher than Tony's, and Gibbs watched as Tony's face winced up with each sound.

He hated seeing them like this. They both wouldn't be like this if they just hadn't broke rule twelve…but he knew that it was only a matter of time before it happened. He saw their looks they shared with each other…he wasn't _blind. _Or _stupid. _

"Gibbs! You have to stop this!" Leon suddenly shouted, and Gibbs turned, confused.

"Stop what, Leon?"

"Stop this!" He pointed his hand at the glass where Stacey was getting the needles ready for injection.

"They're just putting the IV in to administer antibiotics, I'm sure that…."

"Do you realize who I just off the phone with?!" He shouted, his voice rising several intervals with each word, "That was Director Eli David!" He pointed to the phone, "He said stop! He's not going to let them give her any drugs! They can't cure her. He's not giving them permission!"

And Gibbs eyes glazed over in complete hatred, "They're just going to let her _die?!" _Gibbs shouted, and that was when everyone turned around, including Tony, who Gibbs swore saw his heart completely break in his eyes. He snapped them shut, and Ziva's eyes grew wide. _I have the plague…the plague…_

Vance grabbed a mask, ignoring Gibbs stare, as he entered the glass room. Gibbs saw him talking to Brad and Stacey, and they both sent worried looks as they argued back. Gibbs saw that Tony's face was cringing up at some points, and Ziva sent him worried looks as she just simply sat there, playing with the hem of her shirt. He honestly had never seen her act nervous, but she definitely was nervous right now.

Brad, Stacey, and the other Doctor finally left, sharing an angry look with Jethro as Vance came out and stood next to him.

Gibbs and Leon both tried to ignore the angry tension between them. Even De Luca moved out of the way, mumbling to himself 'that's my son…my son…my son…'

Gibbs broke the silence, "They're going to let her die, Leon?"

"Yes." He nodded.

"Why?" He demanded, turning on him, staring deep into her eyes, "They can cure her. Ziva's over 21, her father has no say."

"Ziva said that she didn't want treatment. She was following orders, Gibbs."

"Why the hell would she do that? And why did Eli not want her to be cured? What does he think this is, a test?!" Gibbs shouted, trying to keep his voice level as low as possible. Too bad his anger was boiling inside of him.

"I don't know, Gibbs. You're gonna have to ask Eli yourself."

"Fine. Set up a conference in MTAC." Vance sighed and continued to stare at the two agents. Gibbs just continued to stare at him.

"_NOW!" _He barked. Vance sighed as he pulled out his phone, shot Gibbs a short glare, and then walked out of the double doors.

Gibbs ran a hand through his hair.

Ziver was strong enough to fight this. She had to be.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The tension between the two agents in the room was almost unbearable.

Tony's heart was thumping in his chest. Director Eli David wasn't letting her live? He was practically signing her death warrant for her. _And I though that MY Dad was bad! Jeez! Damn it, he's no father! What father would let their last living daughter die?_

For Ziva, the only thought running through her mind was this: _they aren't precautions_…_I have the plague. But I can get through it. I am strong enough to fight it. I do not need antibiotics or whatever they are called. I will follow papa's orders and I will fight this. _Her thoughts were broken off by Tony's voice breaking through the tension filled room.

"Ziva…" He managed to crack out, and she reached for him with her hand. They grasped each others as tightly as they could as their eyes locked over the small space between them.

"Yes, Tony?" She asked, trying to mask her own nervousness in her voice. Too bad she couldn't hide the scared tint she was sending out through her eyes.

"Don't die." He pleaded in the weakest voice she could possibly imagine.

Ziva didn't have an answer for that, she knew she wasn't going to die, but she wasn't going to make promises she couldn't keep. She just squeezed his hand again.

On the other side of the glass, Dr. Brad Pitt and Nurse Stacey Green were sitting there. They shared looks at each other, for they had been listening in on their conversation. They were deeply concerned. If Ziva didn't get treatment, taking into consideration that her immune system was significantly weaker than Tony's…they both didn't know just how much time she had left.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

**OKAY! SO! Before everyone just flips out all over that poor little review button/box (and please don't! it's been nice to me!) I will say that there is a VERY good reason as to why Eli doesn't want Ziva to get treatment AND why Eli was contacted by Vance. So just...stay tuned! And don't flip all over the button when you review! :) thanks!**


	8. MTAC

**FIRST OFF! Before you read…I kinda changed the last chapter a little. Not much. Basically, Eli orders Ziva not to get medication, and she goes by her father's orders and says that she doesn't get it. Because I just realized, after I wrote it, that whether or not she gets drugs isn't up to Eli. It's up to her. And she's following orders. Just thought I'd clear that up. Now enjoy! **

**__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________**

This was about the fifth time that Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs paced in front of the MTAC screen, waiting. And waiting. And waiting some more. The screen currently showed an empty desk of the Mossad Director, the one that he wanted to speak with so avidly.

He wanted to know why Eli ordered Ziva not to have treatment…and why she _agreed _to it. Never before had Gibbs known for her to make such a stupid decision…to follow such a stupid order! But she did, and she was going to have to suffer the consequences. He was already trying to get Tony to convince her as best he could (though he honestly could barely talk as it was.) But then again, they did have this weird thing where they communicated with their eyes….

"Damn it, where is he, McGee?" He asked, turning angrily on his junior field agent. He was sitting at the desk, his headset on as Gibbs continued to pace.

"I called him thirty minutes ago boss, he said he should be here momentarily…"

"Call him again!" He barked, getting angrier by the second.

He sighed, "Boss I don't think…" He trailed off as he saw his boss' look. He turned back around and picked up the receiver, "All right. I'll try again. But I can almost promise you that he-"

"Agent Gibbs." They suddenly heard the Mossad Director's voice come through the MTAC feed and Jethro stopped pacing as he walked towards the screen.

"Director David! You mind telling me why the _hell _you are ordering your daughter not to have medication?!" He shouted, enraged. McGee gulped. It was only a couple of wrong words that would set Gibbs off…

"Agent Gibbs." He said, "I assure you that there is a reason for everything I do, I-"

But Gibbs cut him off, "Yeah?! Well then tell me the reason behind _this_! You're just going to let your last living daughter die?!"

"Agent. Gibbs." He firmly said, getting a little angry, "Must I remind you who killed Ari?"

Gibbs sighed as McGee gave a small look at his boss, "You have killed one of my children, Agent Gibbs."

"Yeah, well, Ziva doesn't deserve to die!"

"All I heard was that Ziva contracted the plague."

"Yeah, the pneumonic plague. They can cure her _if _you tell her to let them administer the antibiotics!" Gibbs shouted, his face turning a little red. This man was _impossible! _

"How did she contract it in the first place, Agent Gibbs?" He asked.

"From Special Agent Tony DiNozzo. He had the plague before, it came back. She got infected."

"How come you did not get infected from Agent DiNozzo as well?" Eli demanded.

"Because I wasn't having a damn sexual relationship with him!" He yelled, enraged. And that threw Eli off guard. He even leaned back in his seat a little.

"Excuse me, Agent Gibbs." Eli cut off, "My daughter was not having sexual relations with Agent DiNozzo."

Gibbs scoffed, giving a half-laugh as he answered, "Yeah, and two of my agents aren't dying right now." Gibbs sarcastically responded. That obviously didn't sit well with Director David. Not that Gibbs cared, "Now can we get back to the subject at hand? I think you'd be more concerned that your last living daughter is _dying."_

"There is not point to let her have the medication." Eli responded, clasping his hands together in front of him at his desk. He opened them up a little and then clasped them again.

Gibbs fumed, turning almost in a circle before back to the Director of Mossad, "And why not?!" he demanded, trying desperately to keep the anger in his voice down.

He sighed, taking off his glasses and running a hand over his tired face, "Agent Gibbs I can assure you that you will not understand the meaning…"

"Try me." He fired, interrupting him. Director David sighed again.

"You do not understand how Mossad works. Especially assassins. Mossad works in a certain way, like a clock. If one of the screws gets loose or becomes rusty, it must be removed. Immediately. Exterminated."

Gibbs took in a deep breath and then gulped just slightly before finally finding his voice, "And I'm guessing that Ziva's a rusty screw."

Eli nodded, "Even if she survives, Agent Gibbs, she will never be back in the same frame of mind; she will not be able to complete the tasks as efficiently and quickly for she will be diseased forever. She has too much valuable intel and information on covert operations as well as military plans….she is not allowed to survive now that she is plagued with this…plague."

"So you're just going to sit there while she dies?!" He spat, enraged as he pointed his finger back behind him.

"I can assure you that it is not an easy task to complete." He said, he leaned back, "What surprises me, Agent Gibbs, is that you were so determined to end Ari's life, yet you are so determined to save Ziva's. The question still stands…why?"

"You're gonna let her _die!"_

He sighed and repeated himself, "It is not an easy to do….she is still my daughter."

"No she's not." Gibbs shouted, his blue eyes hard, his tone cold, his face red with anger, "If she was your daughter! If you loved her, you would do something to stop this! You know what, hell, she doesn't need your _damn _opinion. Ziva's old enough to figure it out herself. She's getting cured. She's my agent. She's _my _daughter, Eli."

"Agent Gibbs…"

"You're just a bastard." he spat as he made a slashing motion with his throat before McGee reluctantly sighed and disconnected the feed in one click. The screen changed to a multiple array of rainbow bars, and Gibbs took in a deep breath.

"Boss?" McGee finally asked, after a couple of awkward silent moments.

"Yeah." Gibbs said, as if McGee had asked him a question. He motioned for him with his finger to follow him, "Let's go. We've got work to do."

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Back in Tel Aviv, Israel, Eli David ran a hand over his face, pondering the words of a very angry Leroy Jethro Gibbs. That teleconference made him realize just how much Ziva meant to the entire NCIS team in Washington DC. He leaned back in his chair.

He didn't want to kill Ziva. He would never want to, intentionally, but if she died of 'natural causes' and not just a hit made by Mossad itself on its own kind, he would feel better about his decision. He wasn't supposed to go against Mossad and their customs either; he knew that, when an assassin finally became unable to do their job, or something made them unable to complete the job as well as they could before, they were…exterminated.

Eli knew what he had to do. He didn't want to do it, but he knew that he had to. He picked up the phone, "Yes. Send in Rivkin and Abijah. Then get my private jet ready. Set the course for Washington D.C. Contact Director Vance of my arrival and only Director Vance." and with that, he hung up the phone. He took a glance at the photo that was in the small frame next to his computer. There was a young Ziva, smiling with the softest, loving eyes he'd ever seen. Tali was next to her, clung tightly to her side. Even Ari was there….the key term being _was. _After his betrayal to the agency, Eli had cut him out of the picture….literally. They looked happy. He shoved the picture frame down so that the picture was no longer visible.

He did not need the description of her beautiful, smiling, loving face in his mind when he ordered Rivkin and Abijah to take her out…and he wasn't talking about a date.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Ziva loudly coughed, unable to keep it down any longer. Tony winced at each sound. Stacey had come in to change out everything and make sure that all of the machines were in perfect condition just a while earlier, and Tony felt a lot better.

Ziva let out a low moan as the coughing subsided and she fell back onto the bed like a limp rag doll. Her nose had turned completely blue a while ago, in fact, a couple of hours ago, and she had already started coughing up blood. Tony remembered that time; it was four hours and thirteen minutes ago. She wiped away a bit that was running down her face again with her sleeve as her eyes fluttered closed and then open. She was fighting to do anything. Her head slumped to the side, and she could barely keep it up as she wheezed.

Tony couldn't bare to take it anymore. She was literally dying in front of him and there was nothing he could do about it, "Ziva." He called out, his voice cracking and she just grunted. She had lost most of her ability to talk two hours and seven minutes ago, "_Please _get some treatment."

"I….can…" She coughed a couple more times as she managed to wheeze out, "fight….it…"

"Ziva, please!" Tony begged, coughing a bit himself as well, "Ziva please…"

"No…" She whispered out, tired as her eyes fluttered again. She knew that she wasn't doing well. She was losing energy by the hour…no, the minute….no the second….and she could literally feel her system shutting down. She had heard Pitt and Stacey talking to one another quietly when they thought that her ninja sense couldn't hear them, but she could; they said that her immune system was so weak compared to Tony's that she was fully infected a couple of hours ago. And now she was just struggling to stay alive. They feared that if they weren't allowed to inject antibiotics soon that she…may not make it. Never before had death been looming over her in this way…in this blue light…how come she was so certain she was going to die? When she and Tony were in that box before she was positive they weren't going to die. But then again, they were both healthy individuals. Antibiotics were looking better and better by the moment. But she knew she could fight it. She had to. For her father. Her father wanted her to fight it. No, her father _ordered _her to fight it. She had to go by those orders. She _had _to. She was trained that way, she had no choice.

Death was looking closer and closer. Part of her was screaming for the antibiotics while the other was completely against them. She was having a fight with herself which meant that she was losing even more energy by the seconds. She finally turned to Tony, "Tony…" She managed to breathe out, coughing a little as she wiped her mouth again with her sleeve.

"What?" He asked, breathing a little better now, his voice still strained.

She turned and looked up at the ceiling, closing her eyes as she managed to whisper out, with all the love and passion she could, "I love you."


	9. Antibiotics

Gibbs secured the mask over his face and then stepped into the isolated area, Doctor Brad Pitt opening up the door for him and letting him in.

He took in his senior field agent for a moment, looking him up and down. He looked a little better than he did the last time he saw him, maybe a little more tired, maybe a little more sadder, but overall, he seemed to be doing a lot better. His breathing was less ragged, and he seemed to be harboring all concern for the woman lying in the bed next to him.

He let his eyes move to his 'daughter' as he took a couple of careful steps forward. She was curled up into a ball, more than likely to stop the pain that was residing through her entire body. The covers were pulled up to the crook of her neck, but with every cough she took, the covers slowly slid down her body. Even in the blue light he was able to see the blood that was slowly trickling out of the side of her mouth. He did all he could not to bend down and wipe it off. Her eyes were shut tight, and even though she was curled into a tight ball, she was shaking intensely, coughs subsiding through her lungs and out of her mouth. And they just didn't stop.

"I tried to convince her, boss." Tony suddenly mumbled out and Gibbs shot his head towards his senior field agent, "She's following…." He let out a cough, "…her father's orders." He managed to breathe out.

Gibbs just turned to Ziva with this newfound information. She didn't look up at him, she didn't acknowledge his presence except with the insane coughing fit that she had kept up. And by the look on DiNozzo's face, it had been going on for a while.

"Ziver…" Gibbs whispered, bending down slightly to look at her face more clearly. He made sure not to get that close to her, as not to capture any of the airborne germs, "Your father says to have the antibiotics."

She just shook her head negatively, and Gibbs sighed. He had convinced himself that the lie was true on the car ride over to Bethesda as well as the elevator ride up, "Ziver…listen to me…"

"Gibbs he will not…_let me._" She suddenly started speaking in Hebrew, and Gibbs cocked his head to the side, "_I am sorry, Gibbs." _The only word he recognized was 'Gibbs', "_I can not think…._"

"All I got was that…" Tony coughed, "She's sorry…"

Gibbs stood up straight and stared at his senior field agent, "Where'd you learn Hebrew?" He suddenly asked, unable to stop himself first.

"Oh, you know…" He wheezed, "living with Ziva is a learning experience…" He let out a deep breath, trying to capture in air for his lungs, "besides knowing that she's the best at making Lasagna…" He coughed, "And that she loves the Sound of Music….and that she loves this weird Hebrew tea…." He coughed…once again, "You learn a few phrases as well."

Gibbs just smirked, but Tony couldn't see it behind his mask, "You're not that good, DiNozzo."

He sighed, "Hebrew for Dummies…but it can in handy. Don't tell Ziva that though…" he managed to wheeze out, coughing after he said it. Gibbs just looked at Ziva and shook his head as he watched her cough, yet again. Tony, again, winced, subconsciously. How could Tony make jokes at a time like this?

It wasn't long until Gibbs heard the door open and Doctor Pitt walked in, a manila folder in hand. Gibbs turned at the sound of the door opening, "Gibbs." He called, "Could I speak with you for a moment?" He gave a longing, sad look at Ziva before Gibbs patted Tony's foot as he started out of the isolated room with the doctor.

Once they were sure that the two agents couldn't hear them, Pitt started to talk as Gibbs took off his mask, "Just got tests back." He looked up at Jethro, obviously expecting a response but failing to get one. He gaped a little, unsure of what to say before he was met with a famous Gibbs glare. He quickly started to talk, "Ziva's immune system was substantially weakened by a lack of vitamins as a child."

"She was malnourished?" Gibbs asked in disbelief.

"Very much so." Pitt nodded, "If we don't get her permission to administer antibiotics soon, she will…." he took in a deep breath, "die."

"Well she just gave me permission."

"What?" Pitt asked, almost in shock.

Gibbs shrugged, "She told me that she wanted antibiotics." Again. Another lie. He deserved a million head slaps. He'd remind himself of that later. Once his two agents were back.

"Well I need her to sign…" Gibbs snatched the clipboard out of the doctor's hands.

"Save my damn agent, Pitt!" he snarled as he watched Brad's face turn completely white.

He nodded, "Yes, sir." He said, "I'll get Nurse Stacey and Doctor Hodgins to cue up both the antibiotics, the oxygen tank, and the vitamin supplements immediately." He stated as he hurried off in the opposite directions, shouting orders at the others. Gibbs just sighed and ran a hand over his face as he started towards the ward again. Tony's eyes met his and Gibbs took in a deep sigh as he watched his senior field agent look at him and then look at Ziva in complete shock and pain.

Gibbs wished Tony could speak sign language. He just nodded and then pointed his head towards Brad, Hodgins, and Stacey who were wheeling carts around towards them. Once they entered the ward, Tony's face immediately lit up as they turned over a limp Ziva in bed so that she was on her back, getting her ready to be…cured. Tony grinned as large as he could as he mouthed back the words to his boss 'Thank you'. Gibbs just gave a small smirk and then turned around as he let his smirk drop.

He just hoped he wasn't too late.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Abby." McGee said, sighing as he poked the forensic scientist's shoulder once again, "Abby." He said, a little louder, with more force behind his voice. He and Palmer shared a look, "Abby…" he groaned, poking her a couple more times. Palmer just stared at the junior field agent from where they had 'set up camp' in the waiting room.

It was all Abby's idea. McGee and Palmer and even Ducky truly didn't have any say in it at all. (though Ducky went home at night unlike the other three).

Jimmy picked at the towel that he was sitting on, black, naturally, since it all came from Abby's apartment. They sat in the corner of the waiting room, the chairs pushed out of the way as a black and pink tent with a skull had been put up. Abby was sleeping peacefully, for once, on top of her sleeping bag, solely Bert next to her as well as a black blanket pulled up to her collar.

"Hey, McGee?" Jimmy whispered, and Tim just looked up at him. They had closed the tent 'door', okay more like _zipped _the tent shut after people kept looking at them and wondering what they were doing. Gibbs had pretty much jumped down the throats of everyone in Bethesda Naval Hospital to let them stay there as well as sign a bunch of papers and pay a fine. Abby was sure she was going to get it, and she honestly didn't need that much stress on her…not with the whole 'Tony and Ziva' thing as well.

"What?" Tim demanded.

"I'm thirsty."

"Well then go and get something from out there." He sighed, "I ran out of money a while ago."

McGee groaned and dug into his back pocket for his wallet. He pulled it out, glaring at Jimmy over the top of his leather wallet and then pulled out two one dollar bills. He passed them over the sleeping Abby.

"Thanks." He smiled as he started to unzip the tent slowly and quietly, getting ready to step out.

"Hey! Palmer!" Tim called as he had one foot out of the tent. Jimmy turned to him.

"Check on Ziva and Tony's conditions too, will you?" He asked, and he just nodded.

"I'll be right back." He said as he got out and zipped it shut.

McGee sighed and then looked down at Abby. He poked her again, "Abby." He said before shaking her fiercely.

She awoke immediately and looked around, popping her head up, "What? What happened? Did I miss anything? How are Tony and Ziva?"

"Abby, Abby. Calm down." She snatched the Caf-Pow from where it was sitting next to her as she drank it quickly, the liquid sloshing around in the cup.

"Well McGee!" She shouted, some of the liquid flying out of her mouth as she nearly ripped the straw out, "how are Tony and Ziva?!" She shouted.

"Ziva's getting antibiotics now."

"Oh thank god!" She said, letting out a sigh of relief, "If she didn't, I would have seriously hurt that woman!" She fumed, and McGee took in the sigh that his forensic scientist's pigtails were off centered.

He quickly fixed them and she smiled, "Thank you, Timmy." She blushed, taking another sip of her Caf-Pow.

He just grinned, "Welcome." ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

About four to five hours later, Stacey stared into the room, "Well Pitt…" She started after covering up the microphone.

"I know." Pitt sighed, "I know." He repeated, "I don't want to do this. This doesn't feel right." He sighed as he stared at the motionless Ziva David in bed and the Tony DiNozzo that was just getting wheeled back into the room after Pitt determined that he was well enough to get an x-ray done on his lungs.

They both looked at DiNozzo's face as he demanded of Hodgins what was wrong with Ziva. And that's when Hodgins told him. And that's when they saw the saddest, most heartbreaking look they'd ever seen on anyone's face…ever…they both had to turn away.

"Give Hodgins a raise." Stacey mumbled as she let out a small whimper, placing her head in her hands, "Oh god…Brad I…I couldn't have done that…oh I…"

"I have to tell Gibbs." He sighed, cutting her off, "I have to tell everyone." He said as he grabbed the clipboard and a freshly printed sheet of paper off of the desk before starting out of the infirmary ward.

When he walked outside, the entire NCIS team was already there, as if they were waiting for his arrival. He looked up at them as they all looked at him with worried, tired eyes. They wanted answers. They wanted the truth. They wanted…hope.

"Oh no…" McGee started, sharing a wide-eyed look of fear between his co-workers, "Who?" He questioned, and he felt Abby's hand around his, squeezing it tightly as she bit her lip. Gibbs shared a worried look with McGee, and then with both Ducky and Jimmy.

"I'm sorry, Agent Gibbs." Pitt's voice couldn't have been more than a susurration as he said the words that made the entire team, even Gibbs, have tears streaming down their faces. The whole world seemed to stop as he whispered, his eyes closed, "She didn't make it."

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

**DON'T. **

**FREAK.**

**OUT.**

**PLEASE.**

**JUST REVIEW! And even though I killed off Ziva, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE finish reading this story! Trust me! Don't just leave because I killed her off, all right? Trust me. You won't want to. Review please! (AND DON'T KILL ME!)**


	10. Aftermath

_3 Weeks Later…_

He thought that it would stop after three weeks.

Tony honestly didn't think that Gibbs knew how happy he was to be back at work. Maybe those stupid voices, her _beautiful _voice would stop running through his head. He thought that he died. Seriously, he did. He couldn't imagine a life _without…._life. He had to come back to his apartment…where she was still there. That same night he packed up all of her stuff, unable to bear looking at it. He shoved it into the back of his closet, the couple of boxes that it took covered up with piles of dirty clothes he knew he wasn't going to wear again, just to get her out of his mind.

Too bad that didn't work.

So later on, Tony went apartment shopping. Considering he had nothing else to do, and he knew that alcohol and medication just _didn't mix. _(he had found this out the hard way….after he knocked himself out and then woke up with a massive headache).

Tony seriously didn't know when the last time he actually laid down on his bed to go to sleep. In fact, he hadn't slept in his real bed at all for the past…almost a month.

As he walked into the bullpen, he sighed and sat down at his desk, throwing his backpack haphazardly onto the ground. He placed his head in his hands. _A month…she's been dead for a month._

"_I'm not dead, Tony!" _There it was again. The stupid voice tormenting him….especially in his sleep.

He snapped his eyes up to the empty desk across from him and he glared, "Yes you are!" He suddenly shouted, causing McGee to look up from his desk, confused. He knew that the last three weeks had been terrible on everyone, but even worse on Tony. He knew that he loved her…he just didn't fully understand how much.

"_Tony." _He heard her firmly say, "_I am not dead. Trust me."_

"Yes you are!" He shoved his hand towards her desk, "Pitt told me you died! You died! You're dead! You're not going to tease me anymore…you're not going to do crime scenes anymore…you're not going to pull any 'crazy ninja moves' anymore…you…" during his rant, McGee looked around. Who the hell was he yelling at? Tony was collecting quite a crowd of on looking people, and McGee knew that now was the right time to stop him.

"Tony." McGee softly said, and Tony stopped screaming at Ziva's empty desk and slumped his shoulders.

"What do you want?" He demanded.

"Who are you talking to?"

He groaned and placed his hands on the sides of his face, closing his eyes as he looked down, moving his head from side to side, "Ziva…" He whispered out.

McGee gave a confused look. He couldn't help himself but say, "Ziva's…"

"I know!" He shouted, suddenly turning on him. Tim had to back up a little, even though Tony didn't actually make a move towards him.

Tony sighed and resumed his previous position. He hit his head a couple of times, "Can't get her out of my head, Tim." He sighed, whacking his head with his fists some more, "Everything I do I hear her voice! I just…"

McGee sighed as Tony trailed off, "Tony…I'm sorry."

"It's my fault…" He whispered, "My fault…" McGee figured he wasn't supposed to hear that and he turned away. If this was what he was like at work…he couldn't even imagine what he was like at home…alone. Briefly, he wondered how many empty bottles of liquor were in his apartment, and how his blood alcohol level was.

His thoughts were interrupted by the entering of one Leroy Jethro Gibbs. Two coffees in hand, he paused in front of Tony's desk, furrowing his eyebrows just slightly together.

"Thought you had another week off." He said, staring down at his senior field agent. If the dark circles under his eyes and the red streaks running through his pupils weren't a sign that he was depressed, he didn't know what was.

"I…" Tony spluttered with his words, "I had to come in, boss." He said, letting out a sigh as he turned his head to the side, not looking at anything in particular.

He wanted to ask 'why', he really did. Gibbs just nodded though, and set down one of the coffee cups in his hand. Tony just looked up at him, Gibbs nodded again, and then started towards his desk, sitting down in his chair.

Tony took a sip of the coffee and then decided that he needed something else….and off to Ducky's he went.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

He entered autopsy and looked around, silently thanking Ducky and Palmer, for they weren't there. Tony ran his hand under Ducky's desk and pulled out the key to the liquor cabinet before sticking it in and opening it up. He pulled out the nearest bottle of scotch…rum…whiskey…bourbon…he honestly didn't know. He honestly didn't care. He just popped the lid of his coffee and then unscrewed the liquor bottle. Right as he was about to add the liquor to the coffee, he heard her…again.

"_Tony." _She firmly said, _"What are you doing?" _He spun around quickly, the bottle of liquor tipping ever so slightly so that it was dripping into the coffee.

"Drinking." He said, nodding as he watched her lean up against the side of an autopsy slab. Her face was hard and a frown was donned upon it. Except, the only think wrong was…her eyes. He couldn't read any emotions in her eyes. He couldn't read her like a book this way.

"_Why? Tony there are other ways!" _She demanded, frowning more at him.

He sighed, "Ziva…trust me." He gave a small laugh, the most that he's done in days, "This is the best way."

"_Tony!" _She firmly said, "_Do not do this. Gibbs can help you, he will help you!" _

"He blames me for your death." He sighed, "I know it."

"_No he does not…" _She said, shaking her head.

"Yes he does! I blame myself! Ziva!" He shouted, the bottle pouring more into the cup.

"_I killed myself, Tony. I chose the antibiotics too late. You had not say! Just do not do this! Tony! I have been watching you drink yourself to sleep! It is time to stop!" _She shouted, _"Tony!" _

"Ziva! I just can't stop!" He shouted, "It's the only way to keep the pain of losing you out of my-SHIT!" He swore as he felt liquid flowing over his hands. He jumped away, on instinct, and pulled the liquor bottle back up. Cursing under his breath again, he placed the liquor bottle back in the cabinet, locked it up, and then got some paper towels before quickly cleaning up his mess. Muttering angrily to himself, he placed the lid back onto his coffee and took a sip. Alcohol flooded his system, once again, and then he started back out of autopsy, feeling a little better. The more he drank, the number he would get….the less pain he would feel.

As Tony exited Autopsy, Ducky, who was looking in on him from the other door sighed, "Oh dear boy…I am truly sorry."

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Tony didn't bother going to see Abby, as the fact that she probably had a million pictures of Ziva on her walls. Tony already saw her everywhere, heard her everywhere, why would he want to see her…again?

Entering the bullpen, he was greeted with McGee, who just gave him a sad smile, "Hey Tony." He said, trying to make him feel better, "How are you?" Idiot. Complete _idiot. _

Tony just sent him a glare as he took another sip of his coffee and then took a seat at his desk.

Gibbs chose that moment to walk into the bullpen, "Tony." He softly said, and Tony looked up at him, "Director wants to see you in his office."

"Damn it." He muttered under his breath. Gibbs felt sorry for him. Almost _too _sorry. He wanted nothing more than to pull him into a hug. That's all he wanted when he lost Shannon and Kelly…he understood what Tony was going through, and how he felt responsible for it all. He kept his eyes on him as he watched him trudge up the stairs, coffee still in hand. He drank it a couple more times before he entered the director's office.

"Boss?" McGee spoke up, and Gibbs turned to him from where he was standing in the middle of the bullpen, "When he came into the bullpen…he all of a sudden started having this conversation with himself…and he was looking at Ziva's desk, and it was really…" he took in a deep breath, "Weird."

Gibbs just nodded as he turned back to look up at the director's closed door, "Yeah, McGee. I know." He sighed, "I know." Gibbs turned around and stared at Ziva's empty desk. _I could have saved her. _

Gibbs felt a lust for killing Ziva's father. It was _his_ fault, _his _orders that killed her. And this feeling? It was almost as strong as his obsession with Ari….in fact, it was stronger. _Much _stronger. Not only did he hurt his own daughter, but he hurt the entire team, especially Tony.

And no one did that to him.

To _his _team.

_Ever. _

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Agent DiNozzo, come in." Vance called and Tony closed the door behind him as he entered the office.

"You called?" He sluggishly asked.

Vance took the moment to look up at him, right as he was taking another sip of the liquid in his cup. A mixture of coffee and alcohol. Not that Vance knew that.

"I would ask you how you were doing, but I think you just answered the question for me." He said.

"What do you want, Leon?" he demanded. He just wanted to get down into the bullpen. Actually….he didn't know what he wanted to do.

"I don't think I appreciate your tone, Agent DiNozzo."

He sighed, but just stared at him. Leon put the papers down he was looking at focused his attention on DiNozzo, "Just wanted to have a check up. See how you were doing."

"Medically I'm fine." He spat.

"Emotionally?" He questioned, and Tony just stood there. He wasn't answering that. He didn't want to talk about her, "See? This is why I don't like intimacy between co-workers. She probably would be alive right now if you weren't sexually involved with each other," He said, and that was when Tony's hands clenched into fists and he started towards him.

"DiNozzo, you lay a hand on me, and I can suspend you." Tony paused his fist just a couple of inches from Vance's face, "In fact, I could right now. You threatened." He acknowledged, and Tony just dropped his fist as he glared at him, growled just slightly, and then started towards the door.

He threw it open and stormed past Cynthia, down the hallway and the stairs. Gibbs and McGee both looked at him as he walked past. He didn't make eye contact. He honestly didn't know where he was going. He didn't look back to see if anyone was following him, he just turned into the bathroom.

Noticing that no one was there, just like he wanted, he started towards the sink and turned on the water full blast as he bent over and splashed his face with water. _Tony….Tony…._she heard her coo his name. He splashed more water onto his face, the cool sensation good on his hot skin before it eventually went away. Water droplets dripped off of his face. _Tony…_he heard her again. He splashed his face again until he finally couldn't hear her again. He slowly opened his eyes back up, blinking away the droplets that didn't drip down as he looked up in the mirror at his tired face, his pupils dilated, his hair a mess….everything all over the place.

"_Tony." _He heard her whisper, and he saw her in the mirror, leaning up against the orange wall behind him. He quickly turned around, knocking the breath out of him as he braced himself against the sink. She wasn't there. He turned back around and splashed his face again. _"Tony…" _He heard her whisper again, _"Why did I have to die?" _

"I don't know." He answered back, sadness definite in his voice as he stared down into the sink, the water dripping from his face, "I don't know." He repeated.

"_Why couldn't you have died?" _She demanded, "_I had the plague once and I died. Once! You have had it twice and you are just fine! Why did I have to die?!" _She shouted, _"It is not fair! And it is all your fault! Tony! Why did you give me the disease? Why did you kill me? I loved you, Tony! I loved you!"_

"Ziva, I know. I don't understand. You're right. I should be dead…" he fumbled around in his pocket as he pulled out an orange bottle. With shaky hands, he undid the top and poured two pills into his hand. He dry swallowed them as Ziva spoke to him again.

"_Why did I have to die? Why was it not you?" _She demanded, and that was when Tony just sank to the floor, closing his eyes.

"I don't know, Ziva. I don't know." He muttered, shaking his head from side to side. His legs were sprawled haphazardly around him. He never felt this way before. It was at that exact moment that Gibbs decided to walk in, staring down at his senior field agent. He just looked up at him, "Boss, I killed her." He mumbled, turning to look straight forward, at the orange wall in front of him, "I killed Ziva."

**So I'm not going to reveal much as to whether or not Ziva is actually alive or not, but I will beg beg BEG you not to drop my story. PLEASE. :( It makes me incredibly sad. **


	11. Die Another Day

Gibbs entered his house, quietly closing the door behind him. Avoiding the squeaky floorboards that he had memorized, he crossed the hallway, making it his priority _not _to feel tempted to go down into his basement.

Resisting the urge, to the best of his ability, he stopped in the doorway that led into both his kitchen and his living. They were both bare rooms, sparsely used, except for the lone man who was sitting on the couch, just….staring. He looked up as he walked in.

Their eyes met for about a minute, and then Tony's moved down to the paper bag that was in Gibbs' right hand. Gibbs noticed this and held it up for just a couple of seconds, "Chinese. Thought you'd like some." He said as he walked over to the counter and set the bag down, pulling out the Chinese cartons. As he was pulling them out, Jethro spoke, "Talked to Vance today."

Tony just nodded, "Yeah? What did he want?"

"Said you threatened him." Gibbs paused as he pulled out another container from the bag, smirking a little, "He wants to suspend you."

"He can go ahead. I don't care." DiNozzo mumbled. Gibbs sighed as he put the empty brown bag that carried the food onto the ground.

Gibbs smirked again, talking about the fact that Tony almost punched out Leon, "Good for you." And then the rooms were quiet again.

Making his way over to the fridge, Jethro pulled it open and automatically went for two beers. Then he stopped and retracted his hand. He grabbed one and then reached down, threw open a drawer, and pulled out a Coke before slamming it shut.

Grabbing the five containers, the chop sticks, and the drinks, he walked into the living room and set the food down onto the coffee table, "How'd you know I'd be here?" Tony finally asked, and Gibbs just looked at him. Did he really forget that Gibbs would come home everyday from work to see DiNozzo just sitting there, a puppy dog look on his face? He shook his head. _That's why I got him a Coke. _He thought briefly as he just sat down next to him on the sofa.

He passed him two containers and a pair of chopsticks. Tony reached for the beer when Gibbs quickly intercepted it. Tony sighed and looked at his boss, "You've had enough alcohol, DiNozzo." He said, a little softly, and not harsh as he wanted it to come out as.

Tony grabbed the soda, disappointed, and cracked the top open before mumbling, "Thanks."

Gibbs just gave a small smirk as he opened up his Chinese carton before placing a large helping of Lo Mein noodles into his mouth. Gibbs was almost half-way done with his when he noticed that Tony wasn't eating his. He just picked at the Orange Chicken. Gibbs knew that it was Tony's favorite… "Eat." He said, his voice mumbled a little by the amount of food he had in his mouth. He tapped the side of the container with his chopsticks once. Tony just looked up barely a centimeter before grunting and going back to picking at it. He turned a chicken upside down in the container, "DiNozzo, you gotta eat something." He just picked at it some more. Gibbs waited for a response, but didn't get any. He sighed, "Tony." He said, firmly. Again, he didn't respond, "You can't live like this forever."

Tony stopped and looked up at him, "How'd you do it, boss? You know, how'd you get over…" He didn't finish his sentence. He didn't have to. Gibbs knew. Tony knew Gibbs knew.

Gibbs didn't have a good answer. He had a right answer, but it wasn't good, "You don't." He heard himself say, and he mentally cursed himself for not lying. But Gibbs hated when others lied, why should he lie himself? "But it eventually goes away. You move on, Tony."

"What if you don't want to?" He demanded.

"Doesn't matter if you don't want to. You have to." Gibbs paused a moment as he studied his angry senior field agent's face, "You think I go a day without wanting to hold my daughter in my arms…one last time?"

Tony sighed and looked down at the orange chicken, "But boss, it's _Ziva._"

"No one lives forever." Gibbs softly said, placing a tentative hand on Tony's back, "It's the way of life."

"But I killed her…I gave her the disease…." He mumbled to himself.

"No you didn't." He argued back.

"Yes I did! If I had just gone to Pitt like she suggested…"

"Could have come to me. Would have been compromise." He shrugged his shoulders.

"I just…I don't know what to do anymore." Tony sighed, shaking his head. He turned the chicken…again.

"Trust me, DiNozzo, you'll get over her. You're strong enough to. Hell, you're stronger than I was. And she wasn't your wife." He said the last part softly as he took a swig of the beer.

Tony gave a small laugh, a bitter one, however, "You know, it's funny, Gibbs." He said, setting the chicken down as he reached into his pocket. He pulled out a small, velvet blue box. He turned it in his hands, over and over again as he gave a sad smile down at it, laughing again, again….sadly, "I was going to ask her to marry me."

Gibbs didn't know whether to slap him upside the head for wanting to get married, or hug him. Considering the circumstances, he didn't have to think twice. He pulled him into a hug, his arms tight around him, "I am sorry, Anthony."

"Sign of weakness." Tony mumbled into Gibbs shoulder.

"Everyone's weak." He whispered back, feeling the tears brimming in his eyes. He managed to keep them back. According to the wetness he felt on his shoulder, Tony couldn't.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Tony woke up the next morning, this time, without a headache. He was lying on the couch, the smell of Chinese food still running through his nostrils as he groaned and blinked his eyes open. His open soda can was still sitting on the coffee table as well as his two containers of Chinese food and his chopsticks. A green blanket was pulled tightly around him, and he sat up, rubbing his eyes as he checked his watch.

0913h.

_Shit. _

Sitting up quickly, Tony noticed a note taped to the sofa, written in a familiar scrawl. He yawned as he ripped it off before reading it.

_Get your ass to work. _

Tony rolled his eyes. _Why couldn't he have just woke me? _He muttered to himself as he got up and grabbed his backpack from where he had stowed it by the couch. Pulling his keys out, he crossed the hallway, the boards squeaking as he did so.

He opened up the door and exited Gibbs house, fixing his hair as he muttered angrily to himself, walking down the front yard to his car. However, once he got to the car, he felt eyes boring into his back. He quickly turned around but was met with nothing. _Just probably your stupid hallucinations, DiNozzo. Quit worrying. _He thought to himself as he unlocked the car and got in. He ignited the engine as he took off down the street.

Gibbs couldn't possibly be mad at him for being late to work…besides…apparently his 'alarm clock' didn't seem to want to wake him.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Why are you late, DiNozzo?" Gibbs demanded as he walked into the bullpen. Tony groaned as he threw his bag down. Deciding to take Gibbs advice to heart, he tried to act like he normally would. Ziva was simply late, that was all.

He gave him a sarcastic smile, "Sorry, boss. _Alarm clock _didn't work." He sarcastically fired back, and Gibbs just smirked. McGee was confused. Again.

The elevator dinged, signaling the arrival of someone into the squadroom. Gibbs looked up over his computer and sat up straight as he saw a woman with solely a bag clad to her hip, a messenger back, standing in the middle of the entrance to the bullpen.

All three agents shared a concerned look, "Can I help you?" Gibbs asked as he walked out from behind his desk and towards the middle of the squadroom.

She smiled nervously and looked around before taking a couple of steps towards Gibbs, holding out her hand, "I'm Tracey Reed." She said, "Are you Special Agent Gibbs?"

"That would be me…" Gibbs said, cautiously as he shook her hand, "What can I do for you, Ms. Reed?"

"Oh. Well since you're Agent Gibbs, that means that I can work with you?"

Tony's eyes snapped up, and he shared a nervous look with the bossman. McGee spoke up first, "What?" He demanded, a little…no, _very _shocked.

"Excuse me? I didn't hire any new recruits."

It was Tracey's time to act confused, "But I could have sworn Director Vance told me to…" She trailed off as she noticed Gibbs glare, "…he told me that….well he said….your team."

Gibbs narrowed his eyes as he looked up at the Director's office. Tracey sighed, "So does that mean I can't stay here, Agent Gibbs?"

"You can." He muttered, and Tony let his mouth drop open just a little. She started towards Ziva's desk. Tony made a move, his eyes turning coal black before Gibbs quickly stopped him by grabbing Tracey's arm. She was confused and stopped, pulling back.

"I was just going to take a seat…"

Gibbs pointed behind him, "Fifth desk." He said before he made his way up to the Director's office.

Rolling her eyes, she started past Gibbs and made her way to the isolated fifth desk. She set her backpack down and then turned back to look into the bullpen only to find Tony gone. Furrowing her eyebrows together, she turned to the last person in the bullpen, Tim McGee.

"Hi." She said, walking up to him and sticking out her hand, "I'm Tracey Reed."

McGee smiled back, "Special Agent Timothy McGee." He shook her hand and she smiled back, "But you can call me Tim."

She giggled, "All right, _Tim._" She smiled, "Seems like at least _someone _is happy."

"It's been rough." McGee said, "The past couple of weeks have been really rough. Tony and…another agent…got the plague. One died."

"The black plague?"

McGee sighed and nodded sadly as Tracey gasped, "Pneumonic to be exact."

She stared off above Tim, "That poor man…"

"And he found his real father around the same time."

"Oh…" She gasped, "I am so terribly sorry." She said, and Tim nodded.

"I'd rather not talk about it though."

"Wait, I have a question…" She started, and Tim looked up.

"Yes?"

"Why am I not allowed to sit at that desk?" She asked, pointing to the one behind her…Ziva's desk.

Tim sighed, "That's Ziva's desk."

She furrowed her eyebrows together, "Who's Ziva?" she asked, confused.

Tim looked down and let out yet another, exasperated, elongated sigh, "Trust me, you don't want to know."

She laughed a little, "Jeez. That bad?"

McGee shook his head, "That good."

She didn't have a response to that.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A couple of hours later, Gibbs walked into the bullpen, "Gear up!" He shouted, and Tony, who came back from the break room a while ago, a candy bar donned in his hand, stood up immediately, gearing up just like McGee. Tracey caught on and geared up as well.

"Where we going boss?" McGee questioned for Tony.

"Appomattox, VA. We've got a dead petty officer. Come on, let's move."

McGee hurried after Gibbs and realized he was the first one in the elevator…which was new. Tony jumped in quickly, sharing a look with Gibbs that didn't go unnoticed by McGee.

"Reed!" Gibbs shouted, almost barking it as the last recruit jumped into the elevator.

"Sorry, boss."

She was responded by a slap on the back of the head. She let out a shock of pain and then clutched the back of her head, turning to the silver haired man next to her, "What the hell was that for?"

Gibbs just gave a small smirk, "Sign of weakness."

McGee grinned at Tony, next to him. It was nice not being a probie anymore. He expected Tony to be smiling back, but he wasn't. He just stared at the back of the boss' head in front of him, no expression on his face.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A woman with straight, light brown hair that bobbed slightly on her shoulders walked down the street, a grocery bag in each hand, her light blue purse swung over her shoulder, the strap slipping ever so slightly. Her sunglasses were dark, therefore her eyes unreadable, yet her lips were in a tight line. She turned down a street and then quickly up some stairs, inserting the key into her apartment as she opened up the door.

She closed it quickly and then flipped the lights on and then back off. She repeated this twice and then left them on as she started towards the kitchen. She was aware of the woman behind her the second that she heard her padded feet on the creaky piece of wood in the doorway.

She didn't turn around, however, she just continued to remove the groceries, "Shalom, Rebecca." She said, her accent thick.

"You feeling better?" She asked, "I brought you some medication." She said, reaching into the bag and throwing the orange bottle lightly over her shoulder. The woman behind her caught it quickly.

"Thank you." She smiled.

"You're welcome…Ziva…" She smiled back, finally turning around to look at the Israeli. She frowned as she saw her, "You really need to get outside."

"My father may have people spying."

"I'm sure that they don't. Besides, you can always wear a hat. And my sunglasses." She passed her the sunglasses and Ziva sighed, taking them anyways.

"Let me take my medicine, and then we shall be off, yes?"

She frowned, "We? No, Ziva. Go. Be alone in your thoughts for just a little. Enjoy the outdoors. It's a gorgeous day." She smiled. Ziva sighed but realized that she was right. She needed to get out.

Ziva started out of the doorway, and then stopped, "Uh…Rebecca?" She asked, and Rebecca looked up from the refrigerator, "Thank you…for doing this…for me."

"What are friends for?"

Ziva smiled back, a little sadly, though it went unnoticed by Rebecca as she turned around and started towards the bathroom. She thought briefly back to the team, who all thought she was dead.

Rebecca was right, what _were _friends for?

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"McGee, bag and tag, DiNozzo, pictures and sketches, Reed…" Gibbs turned to her and sighed, "Observe."

_Déjà vu. _He briefly thought as he turned around and walked over to take witness statements.

"What a place for a murder, huh, Tony?" McGee asked as Tony walked over to him, camera in hand. McGee just looked at him as Tony snapped a photo, "You know…in the middle of the street…in broad daylight…obviously _someone _saw."

Tony just stopped taking photos and looked up at McGee, "You know what?"

"What?" McGee rolled his eyes, pulling out an evidence bag as he finished pulling on his gloves, "A stupid movie?" he joked, but it was more like a _wish. _If Tony could just act like Tony again…

"Naw…" Tony shook his head, "You're a great investigator, Tim."

McGee just gaped as Tony went back to taking pictures, "You have to be joking, right?"

Tony was confused now. He looked up again, "What? You are. Hasn't anyone told you that?"

"Well yeah…but I just wasn't expecting to hear that from you I mean you're…"

"Less talking, more working, McGee." Gibbs called as he walked towards the body in the middle of his agents, "Where's Duck?" He demanded, spreading his arms wide.

"I called him a little bit ago, boss. He said he and Palmer were in traffic. And it seemed like Jimmy was in a _lot _of trouble." McGee laughed, and Gibbs just stared at him.

"DiNozzo!" Gibbs suddenly shouted, "Whatcha got so far?" But Tony didn't hear him. His eyes were fixated on a small alley between two apartment buildings and some town homes as well, "DiNozzo!" Gibbs shouted again. Tony didn't blink. There was a woman in the middle of the two alleys, who looked like….Tony tried not to believe it. But she just looked so _real. _Not like the images of her he'd seen before…she pulled off her sunglasses and then Tony saw it.

There it was.

The little twinkle in her eyes.

He could read her eyes. It was her. She wasn't dead. It was her. He knew. His heart started to beat uncontrollably. She was alive. Alive! And than he couldn't stop himself.

Based solely on the adrenaline running through his heart, he dropped the sketchpad and the pen and then bolted towards the alley, Gibbs shouting after him. Tony shoved through the crowd of people around the crime scene, "Ziva!" Tony shouted, and McGee shared a look with his boss.

"Boss…" Tim started, more of a warning, before Gibbs heard Tony shout Ziva's name. And then he bolted after him, commanding people to move out of his way.

"Tony!" He shouted, and Tony caught her beautiful brown hair disappearing into the alleyway.

"ZIVA!" He yelled again as he turned into the alley only to stop abruptly. It was a dead end. He groaned and kicked the wall as he huffed and slumped up against it.

He had been _so _sure it was her. He had been able to read her eyes….he hadn't been able to do that with his other hallucinations…

"DiNozzo!" he heard his name being called, and he turned, very much out of breath to come face to face with a very angry Leroy Jethro Gibbs, "What the hell was that?!" Gibbs demanded as he stopped in front of DiNozzo.

"Boss I saw her! I saw her!" He said, hysterically, as if he was happy and sad at the same time, "She was here!" he gestured to the alley, "She was here! I saw her!"

Gibbs sighed, "DiNozzo…" He shook his head.

"No! Gibbs! I saw her! With my own eyes! I'm not making this up!"

Gibbs groaned and grabbed Tony's arm, "Tony. Let's get back to the crime scene."

He ripped it from his boss, "No! Gibbs! I saw her! I swear I did!"

"She's dead, DiNozzo!" He finally shouted, "She's not coming back!" And that shut Tony up. For maybe a couple of seconds.

"Boss, no. She's not. I saw her! I did! I promise you! Gibbs it was her!" Gibbs just sighed as he felt his heart break a little at the sight of his bewildered senior field agent. He was so certain he had seen her.

Maybe his senior field agent really had gone insane.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

**Better? And don't worry, you'll get to see more of Rebecca later and who she is and how Ziva came to her….AND…I haven't forgotten about Tony's dad! He WILL come back. In a big way. :) Review?**


	12. Therapy

Rebecca looked up the moment that Ziva walked in the door. Her face was flustered, perhaps even a little paler than before, and her eyes were wide. She immediately became on red alert when she saw her friend. She stood up quickly, setting the book down onto the coffee table as she walked towards her.

"Ziva?" She questioned, "Are you all right?" She asked, sincerity and concern adamant in her eyes.

"When I went for my walk, NCIS was there." She softly said, "Tony…I saw Tony…" She could feel the tears threatening to fall, and she pushed past her friend and into her small bedroom, solely a bed and a dresser there. Some of her clothes were scattered around the room, which she acquired from Rebecca herself, some of them she didn't even want to wear anymore.

Rebecca sighed and followed Ziva, leaning up against the doorframe. The Israeli woman was sitting on the edge of her bed, her head in her hands, "How could I do this to him?" She mumbled, "I think about him every day, Rebecca. He believes I am dead." She managed to spit out, wiping the tears that were threatening to fall away. She turned from her friend and stared down at the light blue comforter under her. She idly picked at it, "I need to be alone for a little while."

Rebecca just nodded her head and then exited the room, calling over her shoulder as she went to close the door, "Dinner will be ready at 7." Her voice was soft, caring. Ziva didn't hear it. All she saw was Tony's face…

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Tony DiNozzo sat in the waiting room, flipping through an old issue of People magazine. Britney Spears had shaved her head…Tony furrowed his eyebrows together. Just how old was this magazine? Nevertheless, it didn't matter. He wasn't really looking through it. He glanced down at his watch. He had been waiting here for about 10 minutes…he glanced up at the man in front of him who had a gaze set on him. One leg was bent and propped up against the other one, his hands clasped together in his lap, the faint ghost of a smirk dancing across his lips.

"Boss, I've been waiting here for ten minutes. You don't really think that this is necessary, is it?" He whined, and Gibbs just stared at him. He opened his mouth before he spoke.

"Shut up." He nicely said, and Tony clamped his mouth shut.

"I've never been to a therapist before." He commented, "Never needed one. My father always said that I was crazy anyways, what was the point in going to get help?" He laughed a little, "But he's not really my Dad."

Gibbs just rolled his eyes and looked down. _See? This is exactly why he needs therapy. Not just because of his little…freak out…at the crime scene. _

"You know, what ever happened to my Dad?" He questioned, "I mean…De Luca?"

"He came to see you while you were sick." He said, carefully, though Gibbs didn't know just how…delicately…to phrase that without making Tony rethink about Ziva. However, from the look he saw on Tony's face, he didn't do a good job.

"Ziva…" he muttered, looking up at Gibbs, "I saw her at the crime scene today, boss. Trust me! And it just wasn't one of those hallucinations either! It was actually her!" He grinned, hysterical.

Gibbs just sighed and looked over at the red light that was on by the door. Tony noticed this and promptly walked over to it, flicking the switch a couple of times, "Come on!" He yelled at it, "Come on! Open up! Open up! Damn it I can't take it any longer!" He shouted just as man came walking out of the office, sighing as he pulled his glasses down and looked at Tony over the rims of them.

"Agent DiNozzo, could you _please _refrain from breaking that?" He groaned, and Tony stopped quickly sharing a look with his boss. The man locked eyes with Jethro too and then stepped away, "Inside, please, Agent DiNozzo." He guided him in and Tony huffed and moved in, mumbling incoherently under his breath. He closed the door behind him as he walked towards Gibbs.

"I guess I gotta warn you…" Gibbs started. He never liked therapists either.

"What is Agent DiNozzo in here for?" He questioned.

Gibbs sighed, "He lost his partner…they both had a fight against the plague. He won. She didn't."

The therapist raised one eyebrow, "_She?_"

Gibbs just nodded and then gave a small smirk, "Yeah. He's a little on edge about that. Says he can't stop hearing or seeing her…took off after one of his hallucinations at a crime scene today."

"How long ago did she die?"

"3 weeks." Gibbs promptly said, shoving his hands into his pockets, "I just need you to sign this damn paper." He pulled it out of his pocket and unfolded it, "To prove he's not crazy…though…he really is. So just sign it. I want my senior field agent back."

He nodded as he took the paper, "Thank you, Agent Gibbs."

Gibbs just smirked as the man disappeared into the room that he had arrived through.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Hey, Doc." Tony announced as he walked into the room, closing the door behind him. He was messing with Newton's Cradle. Apparently he was really fascinated with little balls that hit each other. He watched them in awe.

"Agent DiNozzo." He called, and he spun around, unable to put on his famous DiNozzo smile.

"Tony." he automatically said, "Call me Tony."

"All right, Tony. I'm Dr. Cooper Crandle." He said, "Please, have a seat." He pointed to the lounge sofa. Instead of sitting, he just plopped down and rested his feet on top of one arm rest and then put his hand behind his head and rested that up against the other arm rest. He clicked his shoes together as he stared up at the ceiling. Dr. Crandle took his seat in front of him.

He noticed the edginess that Gibbs was talking about earlier, just by the way that his shoes were clicking together…nice, expensive, Italian Leather ones…he grinned. _Nice. _He could also tell that something was troubling him by the way that his hair didn't sit correctly on his head. Of course, it didn't have to be perfect or anything, but it had to be better than _that_! Anyone who wore custom made Italian shoes as well as an Armani suit _definitely _had more hygiene than that. And, taking in the slight red tinge in his eyes and the dark circles cast under his eyes, he knew that he hadn't slept probably in days, "So, Tony, how are you?" He questioned, and Tony didn't look at him. He continued to stare up at the ceiling.

He didn't answer. He just turned his head slightly away from him. Showing that he honestly didn't want to be there.

"You know, Tony." He sighed, looking down at the sheet of paper, "If you don't participate during this session than I can sign it off to recommend that your Director suspend you…" He leered, and Tony didn't seem phased by it. He just shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't care." He simply said. Now this shocked Cooper Crandle, but he decided to play along. He knew that the more he got him talking, the more that he probably couldn't stop.

"I understand. You don't like your job?" He questioned.

"No, I do, just…not now." He finally decided.

"And why not? What's changed?" He asked, though he knew the answer. Gibbs had told him.

Tony laughed and turned to look at him as his small smile dropped, "Are you _sure _you're a psychiatrist/therapist/whatever?"

Dr. Crandle looked taken back. He sat back in his seat, "Why do you ask that?"

Tony laughed again and turned back, "Aren't you people supposed to like…read minds or something?" He asked.

"If by reading minds you mean figuring out what's troubling you so, then yes, I can."

Tony's smile dropped and he turned his head to face him again. He furrowed his eyebrows together, "Why do you think there's something troubling me?" He asked, sitting up a little, "If it's because of my little mishap at the crime scene today, that's just Gibbs being overdramatic." He scoffed.

"What happened at the crime scene?" He questioned, and this time, Tony didn't question him back.

"Well so there I was, right? Looking sexy as hell with my sunglasses and my hat and all that. So I had the pen and the paper in my hands…I'm a sketch artist…" He started talking with his hands, reenacting it out, "And I was telling Tim he was a great investigator, and he thought I was going crazy, I don't know…" He started, "And then I saw her!" He sat up on the couch, swinging his feet back around so that they were on the ground.

"Who?" He questioned.

"Ziva! I saw her! And I thought she was _dead!_" He was in hysterics now, smiling like an idiot, his eyes wide, "I dropped the pen and paper and then ran towards her but by the time that I got to her, she was…._gone._ But I was so certain it was her!" He sighed and looked down.

"Does this happen a lot?"

"What? Seeing Ziva?" The doctor took in how his voice slightly cracked at her name.

"Yes. And calling your co-worker…Tim I believe? A good investigator."

Tony scoffed, "Oh, the Tim thing never happens. In fact, I rarely call him Tim. But that's not the point. I've seen her before, I've talked to her! Of course, she's disappeared before anything could really happen, but I knew those were hallucinations. This _wasn't _a hallucination. Trust me."

"How long has this been going on?" He asked, even though he already knew. But he also knew that if he said that it had been going on for three weeks, Tony would probably be a little scared and nervous, and he was already in a delicate state of mind.

"Three weeks." Tony mumbled, and Cooper sighed. No wonder he's gone crazy...

"How are you so certain? That it was her, I mean. And not a hallucination," He asked, making a note on the 'Tim' thing in the back of his mind.

"I could read her eyes." He grinned, leaning forward a little, nearly whispering it.

Cooper nodded, "You could read her eyes?" He asked.

"Yeah, yeah! See Zi and I have this weird thing where we can read each other's eyes. So we don't have to speak in conversation…"

During Tony's little sentence, Cooper pinched the bridge of his nose, closed his eyes, and looked down, sighing, "You were more than partners, weren't you?" He finally questioned as he looked back up and dropped his hand.

Tony stopped and the smile was wiped off of his face. He looked down as he answered, "Yeah. Much more."

"She love you back?"

"Yeah." That was it. Just 'yeah'.

"She ever voice that or just show you with her body?" He asked, hoping to get a smile out of the boy. His smile and his frown were both contagious, his frown more contagious than the smile.

"She told me. Once."

"When?" He questioned. Once? How was that enough?

"Right when she was about to die." He said, taking in a shaky breath as he put his head in his hands.

"Tony, I…"

"Just forget about it. I don't need therapy."

"What do you need?" He questioned as he watched him stand up and walk towards the window, looking out into the downtown DC area.

He reached into his pocket and turned a box inside of it, "…Ziva…" He whispered, just barely enough to escape past his lips. Cooper tried to figure out what was in his pocket, and, when he finally figured it out, he just looked down. _Could this get any worse? _

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**Since I didn't update yesterday, I'm going to update twice today. : ) Especially since I'm going out of town from Tuesday to Saturday, so I won't be able to update at ALL. Sorry! Review please? The more reviews I get, the faster I update!**


	13. Drinks

Tony squeezed the stress ball in his hands, over and over again, unclenching his fist and clenching it again from where he sat in front of Cooper.

"Drinking?" Cooper suddenly asked.

Tony's head snapped up, "I'd love one!" He grinned, and Cooper shook his head.

"No, Tony. I didn't ask you if you would like a drink, I asked if you have been drinking." He reiterated, and Tony sighed.

"Why does it matter?" He demanded.

"Depends on how much." He leaned back in his chair.

Tony laughed a little, squeezing on the stress ball again, "I don't see how this is relevant, but yeah, I drink so I won't have to think about her." He shrugged his shoulders, as if it wasn't a big deal.

"Do you think that drinking that excessively is good for you?" He demanded.

Tony sighed and looked around, "I don't care." He said, simply, looking him dead in the eyes.

Cooper rolled his eyes. This guy was _dense_! He is going to kill himself over a _girl! _He leaned forward and clamped his hands together in between his legs, looking him straight in the eyes, "Tony…" He started, sighing. Was he really going to say it? "You need to move on." There. He said it.

Tony's eyes suddenly turned dark and black, "No." He growled, leaning forward towards him. Cooper moved back, "I saw her at the crime scene today! I _saw her_! She's alive, Doctor Cradle, Crandle, Crabble, whatever! She's alive, damn it! I know she's alive." He growled, standing up in frustration, squeezing his hands into such tight fists together that the stress ball started to ooze out the gel that was inside of it through his fingers.

He reached towards it, and then pulled back, sighing as he watched his favorite purple stress ball disappear in DiNozzo's grip.

"She's dead, Agent DiNozzo." He said, sighing, " Please understand this."

"SHE'S NOT DEAD!" he screamed at the top of his lungs before reaching down and swiping all of the magazines off of the table in front of the couch. They hit the ground, some of them opening up, the familiar sound of that familiar paper rustling.

"Agent DiNozzo!" Cooper called, trying to stop him. But he didn't move. He was a federal agent. An _armed _federal agent. And he was grieving, and he needed to take his anger out on…something.

"She's not _dead_!" He shouted, and on the word 'dead' he grabbed a green pillow off of the couch and chucked it at the window. Cooper just sat there, shaking his head as he propped his chin up on his hand. This wasn't the first time that someone had done this before. He mumbled angrily to himself as he kicked the couch and then punched the wall, leaving a small indentation.

"Are you done, Agent DiNozzo?" He asked as he watched him slump up against the wall. He turned on him, out of breath.

"No one believes me!" he shouted, on the verge of tears, "No one believes me! I saw her! I see her! I hear her! I saw her today at the crime scene! I knew it was her! I saw her eyes!" He pointed to his own and then started heavily breathing. That wasn't good for his lungs. The attacking of the office part, that was.

Cooper suddenly went on red alert, "Are you all right, Tony?" He questioned, getting up and walking towards him.

"I'm fine…" he breathed out, "I'm still recovering from the plague."

"The plague?" He questioned, and Tony just put two hands on his bent knees, staring down at the ground.

He nodded, licking his lips, "The plague." He repeated, "Ziva and I had it. She died. I've had it before. I survived it twice." He stood up fully and looked at the doctor, "Why didn't I die?"

Cooper carefully placed a hand on his back, giving him a sad yet reassuring smile. He led him to the couch and sat him down, walking over to the mini fridge behind his desk full of water bottles and, of course, his lunch. As he walked, he spoke, "It is perfectly normal to blame yourself for the death of someone close to you." He said, softly, pulling out a bottle and then walking back over to Tony. He handed it to him, and he took it. Cooper took a seat on the edge of the now empty coffee table. He looked down at Tony, but Tony didn't look up at him. He just looked down at the water bottle in his hands, "But you can't blame yourself for this." He said, and Tony didn't respond. A couple of seconds later, the doctor spoke again, "This isn't your fault, Tony." He said.

"Yeah, well, tell Ziva that." He spat as he opened up the bottle in one turn and took a large sip. He out a sigh of relief almost as he let the bottle leave his lips.

Cooper finally understood, after a while, that he was talking about the hallucinations of her that he's been seeing, "What has Ziva told you?" He questioned.

"That I should be dead." He said, "That I should be dead and not her."

He chose his words carefully, "If she was alive and you were dead…" He paused a moment, "Would she have felt the same way?"

He sighed and leaned back, "I don't know." He admitted.

Cooper placed a hand on Tony's shoulder and Tony looked up at him, "Move on." He slowly said, "She's dead. The best thing you can do is-" But he stopped as he watched Tony shoved his hand off of his shoulder, throw the open water bottle at him (some of the water getting onto his suit) and then storm out of the room, closing the door behind him, "Leave it behind." He finished, staring down at the water bottle that was now finishing draining on the ground.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Tony was thankful that Gibbs hadn't stayed, so he called a Taxi using a pay phone and then took a ride to the nearest bar. It was late, which was odd, considering that therapy sessions didn't last that long. However, according to his watch, it was around 2000h. The taxi driver pulled over to the curb and he got out at his favorite place. He paid the driver, who took off, and then entered the bar.

Soft music was playing in the background, and there was a relatively small amount of people there. There was a couple in the back booth, and then a couple of single ladies at the bar as well as two men. He took a seat at the end, next to a woman with brown hair. Two women with blonde hair tried to flirt it up with the black haired man between them, one arm slung over each of their shoulders. Tony's eyes caught his and he winked. Tony just stared and then put his hand up, just a little, signaling for a drink.

"What can I get for you sir?" The bartender asked.

"Coors light." He simply said.

"What size?"

"The biggest." He confirmed, and then idly picked at the wood of the bar.

"Excuse me." The woman next to him said, and he didn't even look up.

"I'm married." He muttered, continuing to pick at the wood.

She put her arm on his, and he flung his arm, flinging her off. He turned to her, "What do you not get? I'm _married._"

She sighed and looked at him before smiling a little, "That's not what I was going to ask you." She smiled.

"What do you want?" he demanded.

"What's your name?" She asked, a little twinkle in her eyes. He furrowed his eyebrows together.

"I'm married." He spat, and then turned back to the wood he was picking at earlier. She placed her arm on his again, "What don't you understand lady?!" He shouted, turning on her. This caused a couple of people to look at them.

"Just tell me your name, please." She pleaded, the same sparkle still there. Her voice and touch were light and he sighed.

"Tony DiNozzo." He said, looking back down at the bar.

"Oh my god…" She gasped, and that made him turn and look at her.

"What?" He asked.

She stuck out her hand, "I'm Rebecca Carter."

He scoffed and stared down at her empty hand, "And what does that mean to me?"

She just grinned, leaning in slightly towards him. He leaned back a little, unable to stand the woman's persistance with him as well as the fact that she was hitting on him. But, the next words she said shocked him, causing him to get even more confused, "The world, Anthony. The world."


	14. Zichro Ivracha

Tony just shoved her away, "Look, lady, I'm a federal agent. I can arrest you for harassment charges and keep you in custody for 24 hours with reason." He threatened.

She just smiled, "No! I know who you are! You work for NCIS!"

Tony let his jaw drop open a little, "You know what NCIS stands for?"

"Of course. Naval Criminal Investigative Service." She smiled, and then her eyes caught onto something behind Tony. She quickly moved her eyes away as the bartender set the drink down.

"How do you know that?" He demanded, "No one knows that!"

"So." She said, obviously trying to change the subject, "Tell me about yourself, Tony."

"Why?" He asked, hesitantly. She just playfully nudged him, her eyes still fixated on the men behind him who were sitting at a small table, staring at them. He furrowed his eyebrows together as the bartender set his beer down, "This is really weird." He muttered to himself as he took a rather large swig of the beer.

She just leaned seductively over to him and reached down to squeeze his ass a little. He jumped as she whispered into his ear, "My little hairy butt." Tony's eyes suddenly grew wide as he quickly turned to her.

"Where did you hear that?" He muttered under his breath.

"Hmmm…" She grinned, "Want to take this back to my place?" She questioned, and Tony was overly confused. But she had used that one nickname….that Ziva had called him oh so many times.

"Uhh…I think I'd much rather like to hear where you heard that."

"You will." She smiled seductively, "Back at my place." She grabbed his arm, keeping it gently yet firmly in her grip.

"I'm not going home with you." He shook his head, shoving her away.

She leaned in close to him, her lips nearly touching his ear as she whispered, "Ziva David." He took another quick swig of the beer, set down a five and then stood up.

"I've changed my mind. Let's go." He said as she grabbed his hand. He followed her out of the bar. Rebecca just smiled as she pulled out her makeup mirror and saw the two men that were behind Tony get up and follow them.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

One of the Mossad men pulled out their phone and slyly snapped a couple of photos of Tony and Rebecca.

"_Call the Director." _One said to the other, in Hebrew. The other nodded and then pulled out their cell phone.

"_Yes….Director David? We have confirmation that your daughter is dead…._" The two men gave each other glances, "_Looks like Agent DiNozzo has moved on. Visuals heading your way." _He said, nodding to the other who pressed a couple of buttons on their own phone. One message lit up the screen:

MESSAGE SENT.

"_We have forwarded the messages to your email," _He confirmed as they continued walking down the street, "_Thank you, Director." _The man on the phone said. He hung up and turned to the other man.

"_Well?" _He asked, and the other one grabbed his arm and pulled him away.

"_We must get packed. We're being sent back to Israel. Let's go." _He said, and they nodded, _"Zichro Ivracha, Ziva David." _They muttered silently, a little hint of regret and sadness in their voices before pulling their hoods up and then promptly disappearing into the night.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Gibbs sighed as he paced in front of the therapists door. He glanced down at his watch. He had been waiting for about twenty minutes. Weren't therapists supposed to be…on time? He angrily thought.

Finally, annoyed, Gibbs didn't even bother to flick the switch, for he didn't hear any voices, and then threw open the door to see Cooper Crandle packing up for the night, his brief case on top of his desk. He looked up the moment he walked in.

He furrowed his eyebrows together, confused, "Agent Gibbs?" He questioned, "What are you doing here?"

Gibbs looked around and then spread his arms wide before turning back to the Doctor, "Where's my Agent?" he demanded.

Cooper's eyebrows furrowed more together, "He left a while ago."

Gibbs growled and narrowed his eyes to slits as he walked towards the man, angrily, "When?" It was simply, yet it made the man jump.

"About an hour ago, maybe two. He stormed out of here after I told him to move on."

Gibbs growled and then slammed his hand down onto the desk, "Where'd he go?!"

"I don't know, sir." He said, putting his hands up and backing away, slightly, "He just stormed out of here. I figured you gave him a ride back home." He said.

"Any idea where he went?" He growled, and the Doctor shook his head fast and nervously.

"No idea." He confirmed, "Wait, that's a lie…I told him to go anywhere but the bar." He said, and Gibbs rolled his eyes.

"That's exactly where Tony went then." He said as he turned around and started towards the door.

"But I told him _not _to go there!" He shouted and Gibbs smirked slightly, not that Cooper could see.

"Exactly why he went." He confirmed as he slammed the door behind him, causing the poor doctor to jump again. He slinked down into his seat, leaning back fully in it as he shook his head. Maybe _he _needed to go to the bar.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Tony counted again.

Yup, that was the sixteenth time that Rebecca had looked over her shoulder, "What are you looking at?" He demanded, and she looked around her before she pressed the button for her remote, beeping the car to unlock.

"Get in the car." She demanded, and Tony rolled his eyes as he got in. She locked the doors as she started to car and then floored it, barely missing the car that parallel parked in front of her as she got onto the main road. Tony didn't bother gripping anything, for he was used to Ziva's driving, "Okay." She confirmed, "We can talk now. You're probably wondering how I know you." She laughed a little and Tony nodded.

"Yeah, that would probably help, lady. And how the hell you know about that 'little hairy butt' comment." He put his finger up and shook it at her, "But I'll have you know that I shaved my butt." He said, and she laughed.

"You're a funny man." She said as she turned the car sharply to the right, shoving Tony to the left. He was barely phased, "No wonder Ziva loves you." She smiled, laughing a little.

Tony turned to her, "How do you know Ziva?"

She shrugged, "We are old friends." She said as she stopped at the stop light. She let her hands drop to her lap and she picked at her fingernails, "I met her while I was apartment hunting. We ended up being neighbors, it turns out." She smiled as the car behind her honked. She looked up and then quickly floored the pedal, sending Tony flying back in his seat. Again, unphased.

"Are you sure you two weren't in the same driving class?" He smirked a little and she laughed.

"Trust me." She smiled, "Ziva is my best friend. I know for a fact that she was very torn when you left." Tony frowned at the memory.

"I'm not happy about that." He said, and then turned to her, "If I ask you a question, will you promise that you won't laugh and think I'm crazy like everyone else?"

"Shoot." She said and he took a deep breath before gathering up the nerve to ask.

"Do you….see her? And hear her?" She smirked.

"Yes." She said, and she watched his let out a physical sigh of relief.

"I'm not the only one!" He grinned.

"No, you are not. I see her all the time. And she talks to me too." She said, managing to cover up the small grin that was pulling at her lips. She was teasing him, and she knew that she shouldn't, but she technically was telling the truth.

"Thank god!" He exclaimed, excited now, "What does she tell you?" He asked as she turned down a road, left this time. He was thrown up against the passenger door.

"How much she misses you." She said.

"Does she blame me for her death?" He questioned.

"No." She said, for she honestly didn't know. She didn't say anything about it. She finally all of the sudden stopped the car and then backed up as she parallel parked the fastest Tony had ever seen someone park. She turned off the engine and nearly ripped the key out as she got out. Tony followed her lead. She lead him up the stairs, looking around the streets as she inserted the key and then walked in. Tony squeezed through the door as it was about to close and she turned on the light and then turned it off, and then turned it back on again, and then flickered it a couple more times.

Tony furrowed his eyebrows together as she put her purse down, "What was that for?" He questioned as he turned to look at her, for she was walking towards the couch. His back was to the hallway, and he was standing in front of the couch where she lay down and grabbed the book that she had strewn on the coffee table earlier that morning.

"It's a signal." She said, flipping through the pages.

"For what?!" Tony demanded, and she didn't even look up at him. She just slightly moved her eyes to the left as she smirked and turned back to her book.

"For that." She said, and Tony quickly turned around, coming face to face with _her._

Her long hair was cascading down her back in loose curls, her olive colored skin a little paler, but still beautiful, her body clad with sweat pants and a baggy t-shirt. Her eyes were donned with the same red tinge that Tony had and dark circles were outlining them, yet she was still dazzling. No, gorgeous. He moved his eyes up to hers. In those beautiful, deep brown pools that haunted his drunken dreams at night, he read confusion yet they were burning like a great fire with the unmistakable passion and love for him.

She took a small step towards him, her padded feet making no sound, "Tony?" She whispered, her sweet Israeli voice soothing to his ears. It wasn't echo-y like in his hallucinations, it was true and pure, and it sound was like a bird singing to him.

"Ziva..." He managed to breathe out, his lips barely moving as time seemed to stop. And then he made his move towards her, just a couple of steps. Quickly, he engulfed her into his arms, and when she didn't disappear or disintegrate, he held her tighter against him. He buried his head into the crook of her neck as she did the same to him, each deeply inhaling each other's scents. "Tony..." She sniffled out, "I am so sorry." He squeezed her tighter, never wanting to let go. He felt her small hands gripping his shoulder blades as he placed kisses up and down the side of her face, nibbling slightly on her ear. And at that moment, he could have sworn he felt tears on his shoulder, through his suit.

And he knew she was real.

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**And…I'm not updating until…Saturday or Sunday! It's all depending on how late I come home on Saturday because I'm going out of town! So yeah! MWHAHAH! Review!  
Hebrew Phrase:**

**_Zichro Ivracha: _Rest in Peace**


	15. Rebound

**Okay, okay. I know what you're thinking.**

**SHE UPDATED?!**

**What in the world, right?**

**I know.**

**But I didn't die. So don't freak out or anything! I'm still here. I just completely lost my…desire to write anymore of this story! I don't REALLY want to write much more of this, but I know that I have to. So I will. Just for you guys J Oh, and sorry if it might be short.**

**(And for those of you who don't remember what happened…basically, Ziva contracted the plague from Tony, and then 'died' without telling anyone that she was actually alive and a woman named Rebecca was taking care of her and keeping her from her father, who Ziva believed was going to kill her because she got the plague and was now weak. After one of Tony's shrink sessions….that Gibbs forced him to go to after he saw Ziva at one of the crime scenes and chased after her…he ends up at the bar where he meets Rebecca. Rebecca takes him home, the Mossad people that were following Tony think that he's moved on and they truly believe that Ziva's dead. But, when Rebecca takes Tony home, he sees Ziva there and they hug J. And that's where this starts up again.)

* * *

**

"Damn, that felt amazing." Tony sighed as he collapsed onto the bed next to Ziva, who was breathing hard, smiling slightly. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer to his body, rubbing his thumb up and down her arm.

She sighed and looked up at him, his eyes closed, a smile on his face, "Tony I-"

"Nuh-uh." he put a finger up, his eyes still closed, "Let me revel in the moment."

"Can I just-"

"No!"

"Tony!"

"No!"

"I saw you at the crime scene the other day." She finally said, and he opened his eyes, looking at her as he dropped his finger, "I am sorry, Tony. I knew that I should not have even been out there, but-"

"Why did you fake your own death?" He questioned, and she just looked down at his chest, twirling his chest hair with her finger.

"It is a complicated process..." She started, and Tony lifted his left wrist up, looking over Ziva as he checked the time.

"I've got five hours till I gotta be in at work. Talk. Cause Lucy?" She looked at him strangely before putting on an accent, "You've got a lot of 'splainin' to do." He grinned, and she looked at him before rolling her eyes.

"Another stupid movie quote?"

"No, actually, TV show. I Love Lucy. You see..."

She put her hand up to stop him, "Tony?" She questioned, "I do not care."

He nodded, "You're right. That was stupid. You've got a lot of explaining to do though."

She sighed, "I know. Everyone thinks that I am dead."

"Not everyone." Tony grinned, shifting his grip so that he was lying on his side, facing her in the bed. He pulled the covers up to his neck, "This are itchy." Tony complained, scratching his neck. She smiled slightly.

"I know. But do not tell Rebecca, yes?"

He nodded, "By the way....how'd you convince her to house you?"

"She did not tell you?"

"Well she told me you guys were friends and went apartment shopping or something another together. I don't know. Ziva, why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you what? That Rebecca and I were friends?"

"No!" He nearly shouted, "That...you weren't dead!"

"But you saw me at the crime scene the other day. And then you chased after me-"

"But you're real!" He said, grinning, grabbing her arm in his grip, "That means that the sooner I tell Gibbs, the sooner I can stop seeing that damn shrink!" He grinned, "Let's tell him now!"

"What?" Ziva demanded as he went to get out of bed. She grabbed his arm and pulled him back, "You cannot tell Gibbs. You cannot tell anyone that you know that I am alive. Understand? And Tony, what are you talking about? You have been seeing a shrink?" She chuckled slightly, "I feel sorry for that poor man."

"Yeah, yeah." Tony sighed, looking up at the ceiling as he flipped to his back, "Gibbs thought I was going crazy. Like loco."

"You are crazy." She smiled and Tony nodded.

"Well...sometimes. But leave that to McScrewy. Anyways, he knew that I was talking to you and hearing your voice and seeing you everywhere. I mean, I guess it was the crime scene that really made him throw me in the loony box. And to think." He sighed, "I always thought that Gibbs would go in there first. Or McGee. But not me."

She sat up, propping up on one elbow as she stared down at him, her hair moving to one shoulder as she furrowed her eyebrows through the darkness, "You...heard me?"

He looked at her and nodded, taking in a deep breath before looking back at the ceiling, "And saw you. And talked to you." he groaned and ran a hand over his face, "I must have looked like _such _an idiot. Talking to nothing."

She sighed and relaxed a little, "Tony..." She nearly cooed, lifting a hand up and running it down the side of his face, tracing his jawline with one finger. He looked into her eyes as she stopped, resting her palm against the side of his face. He moved his head so that it was resting against her hand and sighed, "I am so sorry." She whispered.

"I thought you were dead." He quietly said.

"I am not." She smiled.

"I know that now. I didn't before."

"Does Gibbs hate me?"

He shook his head, "No one could ever hate you, Ziva. In fact, I could have sworn that I saw a tear threatening to fall out of his eye the other day, when I came over to stay at his place. He brought Chinese food. We talked about you."

She smiled, "What else is new, yes?"

"We talked about...about how I was supposed to get over you. Even though I didn't want to." He groaned, "Why am I saying this? None of it matters anymore! And I sound like a big fat sap."

"You are not big, Tony, you are not fat, and you are not a sap. You are a regular-sized, fit, loving man."

He rolled his eyes, "Thanks for making me sound like one of those guys trying out for America's Next Top Model." He looked up at her in fear, "I'm not making, getting fit for, or trying on a dress!"

"You do not understand how sorry I am, Tony."

"You made me go through hell!" Her eyes suddenly dropped and she nodded.

"I know, Tony. I said that I was sorry! What else can I possibly do?" She demanded, staring dwon at him, the darkness of the night making playful shadows on his face, combining with the moonlight coming through the window of the bedroom, which scattered on the hardwood ground.

He grinned, "I know what you can do." He smiled as he gently wrapped one arm around her head, pulling her down so that his lips crashed against hers. She moaned and carefully climbed on top of him.

"Ah..." She smiled, positioning herself as she broke for air, their faces just centimeters apart, "You remembered that I like it on top."

He grinned his famous DiNozzo smile, "I could never forget you."

* * *

It had been three weeks and twelve days since McGee and Gibbs had seen Tony smile, much less _this _big.

But here he was, strutting into the bullpen, sunglasses donned on his face, his NCIS issued backpack slung over one shoulder, "Morning McSleepy! Did you get even a wink last night? You seem to be running on empty..." He looked down at his coffee cup that he had in one hand, "Just like my coffee cup! Refill it McErrand!" He grinned, popping the top off and shoving it towards him. Gibbs and McGee just looked at each other.

"Why are you so happy?" McGee finally said.

"Um..." Tony started, "Cause I _want _to be?" He said it in a tone that clearly stated that that was a dumb thing to be asking, "Um, hello McProbalicious? Coffee much?" He questioned, shaking the empty cup, the little liquid left in there sloshing around.

"Get it yourself."

"No!" Tony scoffed, "I'm senior field agent. I pull more rank. You're still a junior field agent."

"Yes, Tony, I am." He grinned, "But I'm not a probie anymore." He pointed towards the new recruit; Special Agent Tracey Reed, who was sitting at the fifth desk, drinking a freshly made cup of coffee.

"Well then get her to do it!"

"No!"

"Yeah!"

"No!" McGee protested.

Gibbs groaned and then stood up, walking over and slamming down his coffee cup onto Tony's desk, "Have had enough of you complaining and arguing. Drink the damn coffee."

"But boss..." Tony pointed to it, "That's yours!"

He shrugged, "I was getting a new one anyways." He pointed to the one he just put on Tony's desk, "Too cold."

Tony made a small, disgusted face before Gibbs continued to stand there, "Um...can I help you, boss?"

"Yeah, why the hell are you so damn happy? And why did you leave the therapist's early?"

"Okay, I left the shrink early cause he told me I could leave. Well, actually, no he didn't, but he was being a complete ass."

"Still doesn't explain why you're so happy. Normally when people are asses to you, DiNozzo, you aren't happy."

"Oh yeah, that." He scratched his head, "I've got a new girlfriend!" He grinned, and Gibbs and McGee just looked at each other in shock before Gibbs turned back to his senior field agent.

"You?" McGee asked, "You got a new girlfriend?" Even Tracey looked confused as she too stuck her head around the cubicle, wanting to see what was going on. She had barely known Tony for twenty-four hours and yet she knew that that wasn't something that would be happening to Tony. Well, anytime soon. To anyone besides Ziva.

"Yup. Her name's Rebecca Carter." He grinned. Again, "Met her last night at a bar. We've got lots in common."

"Tony..." Gibbs sighed.

"You rebounded that fast?" McGee cut in, and Tony shrugged.

"Gotta have a fallback."

"Oh yeah? And where does that ring fall back on?" Gibbs muttered before giving him one of his angry 'looks' and then starting out of the bullpen, "Going for coffee!" He barked as the three agents heard the down button for the elevator nearly crack under his pressure of his thumb.

Tony sighed and then looked down at his desk, the cup of coffee nearly glaring up at him. He then looked at McGee, who was turned and looking at his computer screen again, like normal. He pointed to the coffee cup, "McHeat. Microwave. Break room. Thirty seconds. Go."

* * *

Tony grinned as he bounded up the stairs to Rebecca's apartment, knocking three times on the door before ringing the doorbell. Rebecca, this morning, before he left, told him that that was the special 'signal' to let them know that he was there and not someone else. Just like the turning off of the lights and then the turning on of the lights, the flickering of them, was the signal that Rebecca was home for Ziva, and she could come out of her hiding place.

The door opened up and Tony smiled, "Hey Rebecca." He kissed her cheek as she kissed his as well, allowing him to step in. Rebecca eyed the black van that was parked across the street for a milli-second or two before she started back inside the house, closing the door behind her.

"She's in the bedroom." Rebecca said, quietly, and Tony nodded.

"Thanks."

She smiled, "No problem. It's actually kinda weird. I haven't seen her smile so much in one day before."

Tony grinned as he walked down the hallway, towards the bedroom, as Rebecca took her place on the couch, flipping on the TV, the volume on low. He knocked on the door, "Sweetcheeks?" He questioned before opening it up a little more. She was lying on her stomach, on her bed, flipping through a magazine, her hair pulled back in a bun, baggy swets and a baggy sweatshirt on. She looked up at him as he walked in and she smiled before looking back at her magazine.

"Hi."

"Hey." He said, closing the door as he sat next to her on the bed, "Whatcha looking at?"

"Just these celebrities. I have not heard of half of these people! Apparently there is something between Brad Pitt and this Angelina Jolie person..." She frowned as she quickly skimmed the article again, "Or is it Brad Pitt and this Jennifer Aniston person?"

He smiled, "It's complicated." He said and she rolled her eyes, one simple flick of the wrist, and the magazine was flying across the room, hitting the wall and landing in the corner where, Tony noticed, other People magazine's sat.

"So Gibbs thinks I'm crazy. Actually, I think he's kinda pissed at me."

"Why?" She questioned, cocking her head to the side.

"I told him I had a new girlfriend." He grinned and she furrowed her eyebrows together.

"New girlfriend?"

"Yup. Rebecca Carter." She paused for a moment before laughing, rolling over onto her back as Tony scooted so that his back was up against the wall. She put one arm behind her head, propping it up as she stared at the ceiling. Tony stared down at her.

"Have you slept?" She suddenly asked.

"Yeah, I've slept."

She looked up at him, "Without drugging yourself up to pass out?"

Tony sighed and looked down.

"Do not beat yourself up over this."

"I fell asleep last night just fine."

"Hmmm..." Ziva smirked, looking him up and down, "I wonder why."

"I don't know." Tony sarcastically said, "Big secret there."

"You know, I am actually rather surprised that Rebecca is letting you stay here. With me."

"Why?" Tony questioned, "She seems nice."

"Yes, well, I guess that she owes me for the amount of times that she's brought dates home and then....pleasured them deep into the night."

"Hmm...much like what we did last night then, huh?"

"Yes, but ours was longer."

"And double the pleasure." He grinned and she just sighed.

"We have so much to talk about."

"Yeah." Tony agreed, "Like how the hell you're going to get out of this mess. And why the hell that you decided to 'kill yourself' anyways. This isn't one of those cheesy, Medical soap operas. You can't just kill yourself off and still expect to have nine lives left." Ziva grinned up at him. He fumbled with his words, "Or so I've heard that...that's...what they do."

"My father would have surely had me eliminated. I would not be able to work for Mossad, because my lungs are not in pristine condition, as they were before..." she sighed, "It is hard to do much."

"Yeah." Tony nodded, "That session last night...my lungs were on fire."

"So were mine. But...so was the rest of my body."

"So what are you going to do?" Tony questioned, "Start a new life? Get a new name? You can't go back to NCIS. You can't go back to Mossad." She nodded and then slowly turned over so that she rested her head on his thigh, wrapping an arm around his leg. Tony carefully soothed her back.

"I do not know, Tony." She let out a deep breath, trying to keep back the tears that were threatening to fall, "I do not know...I do not...I do not..."

"Ziva, shh...you can cry."

"No, I cannot. It is against my training."

"Well, technically, you're not Mossad anymore, Ziva. So you can cry. And technically, Ziva David doesn't exist anymore. And I'm pretty sure that it isn't against God's 'training' to cry. And besides." He shrugged his shoulders, "I'm a DiNozzo."

"De Luca." She shook her head, her voice cracking.

"Doesn't matter if I'm Sean Connery. I still cried. Though Sean Connery wouldn't cry...bad example." Ziva let out a little, teary laugh.

"Tony..." and then she couldn't take it anymore. Her entire body shuddered and the tears just came pouring out, the ones that she had kept inside for oh so long.

He was right.

What _was _she going to do?

* * *

**So I know it's short, but TRUST ME, if I keep it up, you might figure out what that phone call like in chapter 2 was about with Aaron, why he called Tony (remember Aaron?) and you'll find out about his Dad some more (remember that guy? Anthony De Luca?) and you'll find out just HOW Tony contracted the plague again. So review, PLEASE. I'm sorry that it's short and that this is like 2 months delayed, but PLEASE review! I love you guys, I'm so sorry! **


	16. Dead or Alive

"Good morning, good morning!" he sang as he danced into the bullpen, coffee cup in his hand, "Good-" He drawled the word out, "Morning!" McGee just looked up at him as he threw his backpack down and sat down in his chair, turning on his computer.

"Morning." He muttered, looking up at him in complete and utter shock. This wasn't the same Tony DiNozzo he saw two days ago. He watched as he grabbed the three picture frames off of his desk, of Ziva in her bikini, the infamous ones that he had snapped by the poolside in LA, and shoved them into a desk drawer, slamming it shut.

Tony sighed. He could almost _feel _McGee's stare in his back, "Probie." He started, "What do you want?"

He took in a deep breath before answering, "Nothing." He nodded, "You just seem-different."

Tony chuckled, "I'm still the same old, lovable, Tony DiNozzo." He said, turning and grinning at him, "Trust me. I don't change overnight."

"Obviously you do!" He exclaimed, "Two days ago, you were grieving over Ziva's, you were talking to nothing, and now you're...back! I know that you don't rebound that fast, DiNozzo."

Tony sighed, "Listen, McGoo. There's no point in grieving over it anymore, okay? Now drop the topic McHost." He sighed as he typed in his password, waiting for the computer to finish booting up. He decided to change the subject, "You have a good night last night?"

"Yeah..." He cautiously said, still confused as he furrowed his eyebrows together, "Why? You seem to have had a good night as well."

"I did." He grinned, "Best sex I've ever had."

McGee's jaw literally dropped to the ground, "Are you serious?" he couldn't help but gape, "What about Ziva?" he suddenly hear himself demand, shoving his hand towards the empty desk in front of Tony. He watched the senior field agent as he shrugged.

"What about her?" He asked as he stood up, a manila file folder in hand, "She's dead." And with that, he left the bullpen.

* * *

He closed the large, silver doors behind him as he stepped in, standing in front of Director Leon Vance's desk, "You wanted to see me?" He questioned, "Leon?"

Vance looked up at him and nodded, setting down his pen as he stood up. He gestured towards one of the chairs around the conference table, "Have a seat." Gibbs just remained standing, "Wasn't a suggestion, Gibbs." Groaning just slightly, Gibbs walked over and took a seat in one of the chairs, scooting it towards the table as Vance walked over, standing to the right of him.

"How's your team dealing with the death of Officer David? I apologize that you and your team could not accompany her body back to Tel Aviv. It is the Jewish custom, after all." He reminded him.

Gibbs just stared up at him, "They're taking it like pros." He admitted.

Vance raised an eyebrow, "Even DiNozzo?"

"He's dealing. This isn't the first time we've lost a female." He nodded.

"But Officer David was closer to DiNozzo than Director Shepard or Agent Todd."

"There a point to this?"

Vance smirked slightly, "Yes." He became serious again, "Gibbs, I have been watching your team, and it is obvious that Agent Reed isn't exactly the best for your...caliber of work."

It was Gibbs' term to smirk, "Hadn't noticed."

He walked over to his desk and grabbed four manila folders, "Picked out four others for you to choose from. Two males and two females. All from San Diego department." He walked back over and threw them down on the conference table in front of Gibbs, "You choose."

"Well gee, Director, that's very kind of you." He sarcastically said as he stood up, not even bothering to touch them as he stared into his eyes, "I only work with DiNozzo, McGee, and David."

"Officer David may have been your best agent, but, if you hadn't noticed Gibbs, your damn boy DiNozzo down there couldn't keep his germs to himself, or his hands, and, as a result in that, David ended up dead."

Gibbs growled, "She _is _my best agent. And don't you dare criticize anyone on my team again, go that, Le-on? I only work with those three. When you can get that in your head, maybe I can work with you as well." And with that, he stormed out of the office, slamming the door behind him.

* * *

"Tony WHAT?!" Abby shouted into McGee's face as he winced. She continued to pace around her lab, fuming. Honestly, she was starting to make McGee slightly dizzy.

"For the tenth time, Abs, he has a new girlfriend."

"No!" She yelled, "I refuse to believe that, McGee! Who did you hear that from? That whiny little snotty bitch Agent Patterson?" She growled, "I'll murder her!" She started towards the computer and furiously started typing away when McGee grabbed her shoulders, turning her around to face him.

"Abby!" He exclaimed, "I heard it from Tony himself."

"When?"

"Yesterday."

"What's her name?"

"Rebecca Carter."

And with that, she quickly turned around again, bringing up a search engine, "Starting all searches for a Rebecca Carter, downtown DC area, woman, middle-aged."

"Abby." McGee sighed, "I don't think this is-" The computer beeped and McGee abruptly stopped his sentence as he stepped closer towards the forensic scientist. He breathed in her scent and smiled. She smelled of roses, and he extremely enjoyed it. Perhaps maybe even a bit too much, "Change your shampoo?" He suddenly heard himself asking, and he gave himself a mental slap on the back of the head.

She stopped and smiled slightly, "Yes, actually, I did Timmy." She smiled, "Thanks for noticing."

He looked down and chuckled, "It was kinda hard not to." He admitted quietly, feeling the heat rush to his cheeks.

"Okay, here we go. Rebecca Carter, age 36. Caucasian female, lives in Georgetown, has a job at a local coffee shop as well as a part-time job at a grocery store..." She scrolled down and continued reading, "Graduated from the University of North Carolina..."

"Check her phone records." McGee automatically said.

"Already doing it." She responded as she started typing again. A call log appeared on the screen, and Abby scrolled through it, "Well she's been calling one number a lot." She commented, taking in the amount of times she had called it. She turned to McGee, who was looking at the screen, almost transfixed on it, "Want me to run it?" She grinned, and then let it fall as she realized it was Tim's famous confused/annoyed look, "What's wrong?" She questioned.

"Abby..." McGee started, "That's Ziva's cell number."

Abby snapped her head back to the screen, "No way. Not possible! Ziva's dead." It pained her to say the words, but she did.

"She..called Ziva's cell two days ago. Abby, Ziva died almost a month ago."

"Tony has her cell?" She shrugged, "I don't understand!"

"Neither do I." Tim admitted, "Unless..." He paused, and they both froze. That would explain why Tony suddenly became so chipper and perky and...Tony-like. The both slowly turned to each other, "She can't possibly..." He started.

"No, she..." She started to smile.

"Ziva can't be..." Tim took in a deep breath as he gulped, turning fully to Abby Sciuto, "Alive, can she?"

* * *

"Took you long enough." Gibbs commented from where he was standing in between two of the bars of the boat in the basement, sanding. He glanced at the stairs and, sure enough, Tony DiNozzo was standing there, hands in his pockets.

"You called me?" He questioned from where he stood on the last step of the staircase, looking at him.

Gibbs nodded as he moved under one of the beams, bending down, "Yup." He responded as he started to sand some more, running the sandpaper over the wood, of course, with the grain.

"You mind telling me why?"

Gibbs smirked as he looked at him, stopping what he was doing. Tony just stared at him with empty eyes, and, if Gibbs didn't know any better, he would admit that he looked extremely...bored. He crawled out of the woodwork and walked over to the workbench, grabbing a jelly jar with nuts and screws in it and dumping it out onto the beat-up bench. He examined it and then lifted it to his mouth, blowing on it to get the sand off before reaching down and pulling out a bottle of bourbon. He silently handed it to him, and then shook it once when he didn't walk to receive it.

Sighing, Tony moved from his position by the staircase and carefully took the jar in his hands, "What? All out of the good china?" He joked, and Gibbs just glared at him, "Right." He cleared his throat, "McGee called and told me you wanted to see me. Unless the little McLiar was pulling a McFib! Then I'll make sure that his McBritches get caught on McFire!" He pointed up the staircase, towards the door.

"Sit down." He said, pulling up a chest. Tony sat down on top of it, taking a sip of the bourbon. There was no sense in arguing with Gibbs. He poured himself another glass of bourbon, took a sip, reveled in the taste, and then spoke again, "You have Ziva's cell phone with you?" He finally asked, and Tony furrowed his eyebrows together.

"No. What kind of question is that?"

Gibbs nodded, "Know anyone that does?"

"Why?"

Gibbs shrugged, "Just wonderin', DiNozzo."

"Don't you try that with me." He said, "If there's one thing I've learned after being with you for at least eight years, Gibbs, is that you don't just get curious. You investigate because you know something."

"At least you learned one thing." Gibbs admitted, "Besides....never dating a co-worker."

"Don't blame Ziva's death on me." He growled.

Gibbs took another sip of the bourbon, and then furrowed his eyebrows together as he swallowed, pointing one finger at him, but keeping it on the jar, "That's what I don't understand, DiNozzo. Two days ago, you're talking to nothing. You're claiming you see Ziva at crime scenes. You can barely say her name, much less talk about death. _Especially _Ziva's. And now, you're cracking jokes, talking about Ziva's death as if it was some woman you've never even met, and claiming you have a new girlfriend?"

"Look." Tony said, "I don't need to listen to your crap right now, okay Gibbs? Now, if this is all you wanna talk about, I'll just be leaving."

"Why in such a rush?"

"I need to meet my girlfriend." He muttered as he set the jar back down onto the workbench and started towards the stairs. Gibbs watched him.

"Agent Reed is going to be placed on another team, tomorrow." He said, and Tony stopped half-way up the stairs.

"My condolences to her." He sarcastically said as he started again up the stairs. Gibbs continued.

"I was going to ask you if you wanted to pick out a new partner, but I guess I'll have to choose for you. She starts tomorrow." He said, and Tony turned around, staring down at Gibbs.

"I don't want a new partner." he growled.

Gibbs just stared at him, "You got a new girlfriend." He pointed out, "What should be the difference in getting a new partner?" Tony just started back up the stairs again, "And DiNozzo?" Tony closed his eyes and took in a deep breath before stopping, "You might want to return that engagement ring. Obviously you weren't ready for that type of commitment."

"Shut up, Gibbs." He muttered, but, he was thankful he didn't hear it.

* * *

Tony knocked three times, rang the doorbell, and then waited for Rebecca to open it. She did, and smiled at him as he bent down and pressed his lips against hers for a short kiss before she let him in, wrapping her arm around his waist. They quickly parted once the door was closed, and Rebecca grinned, "You know where she is." She said, gesturing towards the bedroom.

Tony nodded, "Thanks." He admitted before starting down the hallway. He knocked on the door and then opened it up only to realize that she was asleep. He smiled at her, though he was slightly disappointed. Perhaps the little trip to Gibbs was just enough to get her off schedule, and, in order to waste time, she took a nap.

He smiled down at her as he closed the door silently behind him, careful not to make a sound as he set his coat on the dining chair in the corner of the room, by the door, and then starting towards the bed.

She was curled up in a ball, the covers pulled securely to her neck, her eyes shut tight. He sat down on the edge, slowly moving closer to her so that he was laying down next to her on the bed. He placed one arm behind his head on the pillow as he twirled her curly locks with the other, his fingertips brushing up against her back every once in a while.

He himself was about to fall asleep while he waited for her to wake up, when he felt his phone buzz. His heart beat skipping for a moment, he grabbed the phone quickly out of his pocket and flipped it open, "Hello?" He questioned, softly, not even bothering to look at the caller ID.

_"Thank goodness I finally got a hold of you! I've been trying to call you for like at least a month, dude!" _

Aaron.

He hadn't heard that voice in a while.

"Yeah, yeah..." He whispered, making sure not to wake Ziva. He looked over at her, "It's been a while."

_"Why are you whispering? Never mind, point is, I finally have a moment of free time to call and tell you."_

"Tell me what?" he questioned, tugging gently on one of her curls. She shifted in bed and then picked up her light snoring again.

"_So I heard you got the plague again."_

"What about it?"

_"You wanna know why, right?" _

"Thought it was....normal for people who have caught the plague before to catch it again."

_"No, no, Tony, you need to just shut up and listen. I don't have much time. You were exposed to the Y. Pestis virus again."_

"How do you know this?" He demanded, and Ziva turned in bed, nuzzling her face into his side. He wrapped his arm around her.

"_Will you just shut up and listen?!" _He shouted, and Tony clamped his mouth shut, "_I was snooping around when I found....okay, listen, point is, your father gave you the Y. Pestis virus again. He's the reason you were in the hospital."_

"Excuse me?" He demanded, but Aaron continued as if Tony had never said anything.

"_You were exposed in the airport, when he dropped his case file. You picked it up. You sniffed it in. But here's where it gets worse. I found something else...I searched Anthony De Luca. That guy isn't your father, Tony. He's an impostor. I ran the impostor's phone records. His name's Jerry Taylor. One number stood out to me. Started calling about a day after we, as in, our former team, in San Diego, got to DC. There's been forty-three calls since."_

"Whose number was it?"

Aaron took in a deep breath, "_Marilynn Garter's."

* * *

_

**Sorry for the long wait! I had a lot of trouble writing this chapter, so PLEASE review! Hopefully the next update won't take as long! Review, please, they make my day!**


	17. Confess

**I'm incredibly sorry about the long wait! I just got SO caught up in my co-authored story that this chapter just got pushed back...and back...and back. It was EXTREMELY hard to write this one, so PLEASE review and tell me what you really thought about it! Thanks and PLEASE enjoy!

* * *

**

Lynn.

Of _course _it was Lynn.

She wanted anything to get Ziva out of his life. Or him out of her life. What the hell was wrong with her? Didn't she understand that she was absolutely horrible? Apparently not.

He snapped his phone shut, looked down at his sleeping angel and pressed his lips against her forehead one more time before he carefully sat up. Without making a sound, he slid off the bed, so that the mattress didn't move, and he hurried out of the room and down the hall.

Rebecca, who was eating dinner in the kitchen looked up at him with confused eyes, "Tony?" She questioned, standing up and walking towards him, "What's going on?"

"I've gotta get back to NCIS. Ziva's asleep, so if she wakes up..." He let out a sigh, "Don't tell her I stopped by."

"Tony..." She started, "She'll get extremely angry."

"She'll get even worse if she finds out that I came here and didn't wake her up. Now I gotta run. I'll see you tomorrow, Becca." Subconsciously, he bent down and pressed his lips against hers. She wrapped her arms around his waist and pulled him closer to her. Without thinking, he closed his eyes and opened his mouth for her. She moaned under his touch, and then his eyes shot open before he quickly let go of her and jumped back, "Uh..." He started, "I'll...just go..." He mentally kicked himself as he started out the door, leaving Rebecca to stand there, mouth wide open, eyes wide as she tried to get her brain to register what just happened.

* * *

"What the hell is this?" Tony demanded, gesturing towards the blond woman that sat at Ziva's desk, "Probie?"

"That's the....replacement for Ziva."

Tony blinked a couple of times before he acted, "Uh, uh, no way, you need to go." he picked up her backpack and held it out, towards the exit of the bullpen, "Go. Get." Tony admitted that he had waited for morning until he decided to come in to work.

When the woman didn't move, he chucked the backpack behind him, causing several people to hurry to move out of the way. She stood up quickly, her eyes furrowing together as she stared at the man, "Excuse me?" She questioned, and then looked at McGee, "Special Agent McGee?" She called, sweetly. He looked up at her and smiled back.

"Yeah?"

"Is this not Special Agent Gibbs' team? The one that I'm assigned to?"

McGee stood up and straightened the jacket on his suit, "Yes, it is. Why do you ask?"

"Because..." She started, almost unsurely, pointing towards Tony, "He...just threw my backpack out of the bullpen."

"Oh." McGee said, walking closer towards them, "That's just Tony. He sometimes acts like a little kid. And he's still a little bitter because of the fact that his partner died."

Tony groaned and looked around the bullpen. He wanted nothing more than to scream out, 'She's NOT dead!' but he knew that that would be a bad idea, "Okay, look, probie, I need your help."

"With what?" He questioned as the woman walked around the desk and picked up her bag, "Hold on." He told Tony and then turned to the woman, "You can grab the desk back there. That would be the best choice, I think."

"Right." She nodded, slowly.

"Who the hell is that?" Tony hissed, lowering his head down closer to Tim's once he was sure that she had taken her seat at the desk and was out of earshot.

"That's Special Agent Courtney Vince."

"Why's she here?" He muttered, angrily.

"Uh...well...someone's gotta replace Ziva at sometime. I didn't think you'd be so mad about this, considering your behavior yesterday towards your former lover."

"My _only _lover, probie." He said, standing up to his full form, "Trust me...." He moved his eyes to look at Courtney, "She's my only one."

"Right..." Tim nodded, "Well when you finally decide that she's dead and that you've gotta move on, let me know."

"I know she's dead. I have moved on-" He snapped, "Doesn't mean that I'm gonna erase the past feelings I might have had for her."

Tim laughed, "_Might _have had?" he questioned, "I don't think so. You did, Tony. You're just too chicken to admit it."

"I admitted it." he snapped.

"How many times?" He quizzed him.

"Once." He responded, almost happily, "Maybe two, but no more than three."

"That's it?"

"What? You expected there to be more?"

"You were together for three years." Tim muttered, looking Tony dead in the eyes, "Of course I expected there to be more." He almost spat, a tinge of anger dripping from his words before he started back towards his seat.

Tony huffed and sat down in his desk chair, picking up a pen and subconsciously tapping it on the desk, trying to figure out how he was going to deal with this Lynn situation. What the hell did she have against him? She must have planned this while they were in DC, because he was pretty sure that she didn't know about him having the plague until then. Which means that she must have gotten the file from Ziva, or found out wherever she was hiding it. Meaning, she must have read it. But if she wanted _Ziva _out of _his _life why did he send a fake Dad to give him the plague? Maybe because if she didn't have him she figured that nobody could have him? His eyes wandered to Ziva's desk, "Hey, probie?" He heard himself asking.

"What?" He heard him nearly spit back.

"You know if they've cleaned Ziva's desk out yet?"

"Uh...no....why?" He cautiously asked and Tony just tilted his head slightly to the side as he studied her desk once again.

"I don't know..." He muttered, bringing the pen up to his teeth and tapping them against it. He then looked around the bullpen, "Hey, probie." He called again and McGee groaned, trying to keep his anger down.

"_What, _Tony?"

"Where's Gibbs?"

"Uh...MTAC, I..." he started, but never got to finish his sentence as he watched Tony nearly fly out of the room and up the stairs, bounding them two at a time, "Think?"

* * *

He found him sitting in a rather dark corner at the end chair of the last row in MTAC.

Looking at the screen and then back at Gibbs, who was sipping his coffee and staring blankly at it, he walked towards him, carefully and quietly sitting down next to him, "Hey, boss." He let out with his breath.

Gibbs just nodded and took another sip of coffee, drinking it loudly, "DiNozzo." He responded.

"Look, so I got a call last night..." He looked at Gibbs' unfazed face before he continued, "And...well...it was Aaron."

"Oh really?" Gibbs questioned, turning to look at him. Tony nodded.

"Yeah, Aaron."

Gibbs let a small smirk dance across his lips as he held his hands out wide, "Who the hell is Aaron?"

"Aaron." He repeated, "Aaron, you know, Aaron Davis from my old team in San Diego?"

Gibbs finished the coffee that was resting in his mouth, swallowing it loudly and then nodding, "Ah. Right." He motioned for him to continue, so he did.

"So I was over visiting Z-" He paused, fumbling with the words. What _was _that woman's name? "Rebecca!" He finally shouted, "I was with Rebecca." He tried his best to avoid the annoyed look that came from Gibbs, "And Aaron calls and tells me something interesting."

"You gonna cut to the facts or just give details? Hurry up, DiNozzo, I don't have all day."

"Right." He nodded, "So anyways, he calls me last night and tells me that he knows how I contracted the plague...again."

Gibbs turned and looked at him, suddenly extremely interested in the topic at hand, "How?"

"How does he know or how did I contract the plague?"

"Let's go with both." he nodded, turning his ear slightly towards his senior field agent in order to listen better.

"Well I don't exactly know how he knows, but I know that he knows that Lynn Garter, another member of my team-"

"The one you fired." Gibbs chirped in.

"Yeah, yeah, _her. _She apparently hired some man to pose as my real father. Remember that file he dropped when I ran into him in the airport?" Gibbs nodded, "Contained some sorta powder that triggered the plague again."

"And Ziva got it by being involved with you."

He nodded, "Yeah." He took in a deep sigh as they locked eyes for a second or two, "That's how."

"So whatcha gonna do?"

"About Lynn?" He watched as he nodded again, "Yeah, I have no idea. Though I'd like to find out who my _real _real father is."

"Yeah, I would too." He agreed, "I would too." He leaned closer to him, "And I'm sure Ziva would have as well."

Tony looked at him and nodded, "Yeah. She would have."

Gibbs patted him on the back, "You're holdin' up well, kid."

Tony stood up, letting Gibbs hand slide off of his back as he looked over his shoulder and muttered, "She isn't the first female I've lost." And with that, he left MTAC without a sound, leaving Gibbs to wallow in his thoughts, his now lukewarm coffee in his hand.

* * *

Realizing that Gibbs was right about Lynn, he _didn't _know what to do, he decided to wait out the rest of the day and then go and see Ziva.

He knew that she would be rather upset that he 'didn't show up' last night, but he truly didn't want to wake her up, meaning that he didn't want to trouble her. He knew that he was going to have to eventually tell her, but he decided that last night was _not _the best time.

Maybe tonight.

He jogged up the steps of Rebecca's apartment, knocking three times and then ringing the doorbell. He waited a minute or two before he realized that no one was going to answer the door. He looked down at his watch; he was about an hour or two earlier than he thought he would be.

Suddenly, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He pulled it out and looked at the Caller ID: _Rebecca _aka Ziva David.

He smiled, "Hey sweetcheeks, I'm outside."

_"Yes, I know that." _She replied, "_Rebecca is not home yet, she went out to go and get us some pizza....you are an hour early, Tony." _

"Yeah, I know." He said, "You mind opening the door so that we can talk?"

"_Yes, I do mind, and where were you last night? When I woke from my nap, Rebecca told me that you had shown up and then left because you urgently had to get back to NCIS."_

"Yeah, I did. Boss called me in. Now can you _please _open the door?" He groaned.

"_There might be people out there." _

"Doing what?"

_"Mossad people. Spying on you to see if I am still alive or not." _Tony looked around as she talked, scanning the street, "_I cannot open the door. I risk being seen." _

Tony chuckled, "There aren't any burgulars out here and no one's gonna try to kill you. Now come and open the door."

_"Tony, I risk being exposed!" _

"Nothing's gonna happen. Open the door."

_"Fine." _She spat, and then hung up the phone.

He grinned and then placed it into his pocket as the door opened just slightly, revealing a sliver of Ziva David. He moved his head close to the door, "Hey, you mind opening it up so that I can come in? I know you may think I'm skinny, but I'm not _that _thin."

She sighed and opened the door wider, allowing Tony to slide through. Neither one of them noticed the man dressed all in black with a camera that hid in the bushes on the other side of the street.

* * *

Tony groaned as he opened the unlocked door of Leroy Jethro Gibbs' house. After about an hour long talk, Ziva was certain of one thing: she wanted Tony to tell only _one _person that she was alive...and that was Gibbs. She had told him that it was because she had no idea how she was going to live a regular life like she did before, and she needed help.

He started down the creaky steps to Gibbs' lair and saw him in his normal habitat; his sandpaper in one hand, moving it over the wood of the boat, a jelly jar filled with bourban in his other hand, "DiNozzo." He acknowledged before he even made it half-way down.

"How'd you know it was me?" He demanded, and Gibbs just smirked, "You know what?" Tony questioned, "Don't even answer that." He stopped at the foot of the stairs, staring at his boss.

"There a reason you came to see me, Tony?" He questioned after couple minutes of silence, "Cause I'm sure you didn't come to help me out on my boat." He said, moving through the woodwork and ending up on the other side to sand that instead.

"Yeah, I didn't, look, this is extremely important." He said, "And I don't want you to tell anyone about it, okay?" Gibbs manuevered back through the wood and set his bourban down on the workbench, for the glass was now empty, and then walked back over to his boat, setting the sandpaper where he wanted, but not moving it.

"Depends on what you've gotta tell me. If it's a matter of national security, then no, I'm not gonna promise you I won't tell anyone about it."

"No, no, no." Tony assured him, taking a couple more small steps towards him before stopping, "It's not."

Gibbs turned to look at him, resting his arms on the frame of the boat, "Well don't stand there all day, DiNozzo! Spit it out!"

"I..." Tony paused, shoving his hands in his pockets and moving back and forth on his feet, something that Gibbs knew he only did when he was nervous. Or he was lying, "I got somethin' to confess, Gibbs."

He nodded, "Figured that."

He held his breath for a second or two before continuing, "I don't _really _have a girlfriend." he paused once again, "Well, actually, yeah I do, but her name's not Rebecca."

Gibbs turned away from his boat and looked at him, dead in the eyes that told so much. He was troubled. And hurt. Almost like he was unsure of what to do, "What's her name?" He quietly asked, his tone soft.

He watched as he took in another deep sigh, "Ziva." He finally said, snapping his hazel eyes up to his icy blue ones, "She's not dead, boss."


	18. Explanation

Gibbs just stared at Tony for a second or two before nodding, "Okay." And with that, he turned around and started sanding his boat again, moving the sandpaper slowly and precisely over the wood.

Tony was flabbergasted, and he had to take a step forwards, "Excuse me?" He demanded, "That's all you gotta say is 'okay'?"

Gibbs froze and turned his head to look at him over his shoulder, "Yup." He returned back to his boat and Tony continued to not believe what he was hearing.

"I just told you that _my _girlfriend, no, no, more importantly, _your _agent that she's actually not dead when you believed that she was, and all you have to say to that is 'okay'?" He nearly shouted. It made him angry, for some unknown reason, like he was the only one that should be entitled to that specific information, "Hold on." Tony paused, everything suddenly settling in, "You knew." He said, realizing, and Gibbs let out a breath as he stopped sanding his boat, "You knew. How?"

Gibbs shook his head and sighed, turning fully around and facing him for the first time that evening, "Jeanne." He simply said, and Tony backed up in confusion, his eyebrows furrowing together in the same manner.

"What does she have to do with this?" He demanded, shoving his hands deeper into his pockets.

Jethro crossed his arms and leaned up against one of the bars of the boat, freshly sanded, "How long'd it take you to get over her?"

Tony sighed, "I didn't count how many..."

"Months." Gibbs finished, "And I believe-" He paused, "No, _want _to believe that you have enough decency in your head to realize that Ziva was a hell of a lot better woman than Jeanne."

"You never knew her." Tony defended, growling.

He nodded, almost surrendering, "True. But I know Ziva. And I know you. And I know that you love Ziva more than Jeanne."

"And how do you know that?" He nearly shouted.

Gibbs sighed, looked down at his shoes, and then back up at Tony, "You were going to ask her to marry you." He quietly said and it was Tony's turn to seem defeated as he slumped his shoulders, "I think that's enough."

"Still doesn't explain how you knew that she was still alive." DiNozzo pointed out, taking a careful step towards him, just to adjust his feet position.

"It took you months to get over Jeanne. It took you _weeks _to 'get over' Ziva."

Tony groaned, "What else?"

"Does there have to be anything else?" He questioned, spreading his arms wide.

"Well yeah. You're Gibbs. You gotta have enough evidence of basically everything to prove your point. So give it to me. Prove your point." He said, walking towards him as he spoke, stopping in front of the silver haired, icy blue eyed man.

They shared a silence for several seconds, though, to both of them, it felt like hours. Gibbs opened his mouth to speak, froze, and then started again, "Abby and McGee." He finally said, shifting his feet position in front of Tony.

"What did _they _do?"

"If Ziva didn't want to be found, DiNozzo, she sure as hell is doing a bad job at it."

"What are you talking about?" He nearly scoffed.

"She still uses her same cell and number." Gibbs pointed out, "McGee and Abby ran Rebecca Carter's phone log. There was one number that stood out, cause it was called about fifty times. McGee recognized it as Ziva's."

"That's why you asked me if I had her cell." He said, mostly to himself, realizing. He did a slight flashback to the conversation that he and Gibbs had, once again, in his basement last week, "Hold on." He put a hand up, as if to stop Gibbs from talking, even though he wasn't planning on doing so, "Why were Abby and McGee running Rebecca's phone log?"

"They wanted to know everything about your..." Gibbs smirked, "New girlfriend."

"How long ago was this?"

"About...a week? Maybe two."

"So you've known for two weeks." He said, nodding his head, angrily, trying to digest the new information.

Gibbs shrugged, "When you put it that way, sure." Gibbs walked over to his workbench and set down his sandpaper. He dumped out a jelly jar full of nuts and bolts, blew the dust off, rubbed it onto his shirt, and then grabbed the bourbon bottle underneath the bench, "A better question would be..." he started, but stopped as he finished pouring himself a glass. He turned around and leaned up against the bench, looking at Tony, "How long have _you _known she's alive?" He asked, taking a sip of his liquor.

Tony shifted uncomfortably, "I...about...a month?"

He took a sip of his bourbon and nodded, looking up and digesting the information before looking back down at Tony, slightly pointing the jar towards him, "And you didn't think that you should tell me about this?"

"Ziva made me promise not to tell anyone that she was alive."

"And you kept the promise."

"I'm not gonna lie to her, boss." Tony assured him, "If that's one thing I'm never gonna do, it's lie to her."

"Learned from Jeanne." He muttered, slightly, though Tony barely heard him. They sat in an awkward silence for a couple of more minutes before Gibbs spoke again, "So why the sudden urgency to tell me that she's alive?"

"She...." Tony sighed, "She wants her life back."

He chuckled, "She died. She's not getting her life back."

"Boss, she wants to be back to living like she did before, working at NCIS, able to go out and do stuff..."

Gibbs sighed and closed his eyes for a second before opening them back up, "I'm gonna need to see her, DiNozzo."

Tony nodded, quickly, almost eagerly, "Yeah, yeah, I'm gonna go and see her after work again, if you wanna come with me."

Gibbs returned the nod, "Sounds good."

"Oh, but I should warn you, boss...she..." He sighed, trying to find the words to describe her, "She's not exactly the way that she was...she looks kinda...torn."

"Trust me." Jethro said, "I've seen her in worse conditions."

Tony furrowed his eyebrows together, "When?"

"San Diego." He quietly said, and that was all that needed to be spoken between them.

* * *

The next evening at NCIS headquarters, Tony glanced at his watch and then looked up and locked his eyes with Gibbs', which were staring at him across the bullpen.

Tony let out a hard sigh and then moved his gaze to McGee, who was finishing up a report on the case that they had closed.

After about ten more minutes, Tony let out a louder, harder sigh and Gibbs knew that Tony had a 'set time' that he had to go and see Ziva, which was starting to pass, "McGee!" Jethro suddenly barked and McGee quickly snapped his head up.

"Yeah, boss?"

"Finish the report tomorrow." He nodded, "Go home."

"But boss I already..." He pointed to the screen, "I already finished typing it up, I'm just checking for errors..."

"Oh stuff it McSpellCheck, get out of here." Tony snapped and McGee narrowed his eyes at him before groaning and pressing the 'print' button on his computer. He waited for it to print, stapled it, and then walked over and placed it onto Gibbs' desk. Gibbs quickly threw open a drawer and shoved it in, recklessly. Sighing, McGee moved back to his desk and packed up his backpack, swinging it over his shoulder as he turned and smiled at the two.

"See you tomorrow, boss! Night, Tony."

Tony just grunted as he watched McGee leave the bullpen and enter the elevator. Gibbs leaned back and waited for the elevator to close before he sat back in his seat, staring at his senior field agent from across the dimly lit bullpen.

And suddenly the two broke the lock and quickly stood up, grabbing their gear and nearly bolting towards the elevator, "How long does it take us to get there?" Gibbs questioned, checking his watch as Tony hurriedly pressed the button to call the elevator back up to them.

"Ten minutes." He nodded as they stood in front of the silver doors.

"She know I'm coming?"

"She needs your help," Tony chuckled, "I'm sure she does."

The elevator doors slid open with a ding and then two walked in, Gibbs shoving the 'Garage' button with his thumb, "She better."

* * *

Eli David was just about to call it an early night when his computer made a 'ding' sound, signaling to him that he had just received an email.

Sighing, he rubbed his tired eyes and pulled on his glasses before grabbing the mouse and clicking on the email that he had just received from two of his officers he had stationed in Washington DC, part of the Israeli Embassy, at this point.

The subject of the message was one that caught his attention immediately 'URGENT: MUST READ!'

He quickly double clicked on it, producing the email in front of him. Noticing that there were about five pictures attached to it and nothing else, he clicked on the files and then furrowed his eyebrows together.

It was solely a picture of NCIS Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo in front of an apartment complex. He paused and then tilted his head slightly to the side as he zoomed in on the door that was barely open, the one that Tony was facing.

And then, he saw the one face he swore he would never see again.

Shoving the mouse away angrily, he leaned back in his seat and ripped the glasses off of his face, biting the end as he stared at the picture. He buried his head in his hands and then shook it back and forth, muttering, "Ziva...Ziva...Ziva..."

* * *

Tony took the stairs four at a time after parking outside of Rebecca Carter's apartment complex. Gibbs trailed behind him, looking around the dark street, just in case someone decided to drive by...like a Mossad officer of some type.

He watched as Tony knocked on the door three times and then rang the doorbell, the door opening and revealing a woman that Gibbs didn't know. Tony, however, did as he kissed her forehead and then turned towards Gibbs, gesturing towards him with his hand, "Rebecca Carter, this is my boss, Leroy Jethro Gibbs."

She smiled at him as Gibbs slowly climbed up the steps, shaking her extended hand, "Nice to meet you."

"You too." She said, stepping out of the way so the two men could walk by. Once they were safely inside, she closed the door and locked it, "She's in there." She smiled, pointing towards the door.

Tony grinned his famous DiNozzo grin and then nodded, "I know that."

"I was talking to your friend." She said as she sat back down on the couch and started playing the movie she had paused.

Tony looked over his shoulder and nodded at Gibbs before he started down the hallway, knocking softly on Ziva's closed door before opening it just slightly, "Hey." He smiled, motioning Gibbs to stop in the hallway and not be seen by his girlfriend as he walked in, Ziva sitting on the bed, cross-legged, a baggy sweatshirt and sweatpants on, like normal, a book in front of her.

She smiled back up at him as he sat down next to her, placing a hand on her knee and shaking it. She looked him dead in the eyes, "Did you ask Gibbs?" She questioned, closing the book and shoving it away, to the side of the bed.

"Yeah." He nodded and she looked at him for a while, obviously waiting for an answer that Tony wasn't going to give.

"Well?" She demanded, "What did he say?"

"Why don't you just ask him yourself?" He questioned, looking at the door as Gibbs took that as his cue to enter, stepping slowly out from his 'hiding' place and walking into the room, closing the door behind him.

DiNozzo truly believed that Ziva was going to cry, for her eyes watered up and glistened as she saw Gibbs walk through the door. He paused in front of her, his hands awkwardly by his sides as Ziva let a small smile form on her face before jumping up from the bed, the springs squeaking as she threw her arms around him, squeezing him tightly. He let the sides of his mouth tug up as he returned the hug before pulling back and studying her pale visage. Her eyes were donned with dark circles and there were red streaks through her brown pupils.

She definitely had been losing sleep on some accounts, and when he looked at Tony's face, it was obvious that he was extremely concerned about her health. She smiled slightly at him and then pulled back, sitting back down on the bed before gesturing to the fold-up chair in the corner of the room, "Please, sit." Gibbs looked back at it and then back at Ziva before walking over and bringing it back, using the legs to shove some of the objects she had on the ground away so that he could easily put the chair down.

He leaned forward and clasped his hands together, resting his elbows on his knees as his icy blue eyes met hers, "Talk."

She shared a look with Tony before sighing and nodding, "Obviously, I am not dead."

Gibbs let a small chuckle escape through his lips as he nodded, "Can see that."

"I managed to fenagle Dr. Pitt into letting me...die..." She managed to say, even though it was rather awkward to say considering that she wasn't that at all.

"Now why the hell would you do that?" He demanded and Ziva let out a breath.

"I knew that my father would not entirely approve of me catching the plague, or how I got it-" She glanced at her boyfriend, "I would not be part of Mossad anymore, meaning that I would lose my liaison position. That, and I know what my father does to agents who are not physically capable to go out onto the field anymore...complete missions." She sighed and looked down at her lap.

"But you'd rather be considered _dead _than be considered 'inadequate'?"

Ziva let out another breath, "I know, it was a stupid mistake, but it is too late to fix it now. I would just like to go back and live a normal life, even if it is under a false identification."

Tony frowned, "But I love your name, Ziva David!" He whined.

She smiled slightly, a tight, closed one at him before looking back at Gibbs, staring him straight in the eyes, "I did what I had to do."

"You didn't _have _to kill yourself, Ziver. No one was putting a gun to your head and forcing you." He softly said, trying to be reassuring.

"I would just...like to live a normal life, like I did before, Gibbs. Where I worked at NCIS, where I went out onto crime scenes and interrogated witness', where I went back to my apartment and worried about what movie Tony would force me to watch this time." Tony grinned at the memories, when things were simple, "Before I got the plague." She finished.

He sighed, hard, and then looked at her before standing up, "I'll think about it. DiNozzo-" He pointed towards him, and he quickly stood up, "Will be my messenger. If there's anything you need to tell me, any other information that you think would help us out, tell him."

She nodded, "Understood." She stood as he walked towards the door, "Gibbs, may I make a suggestion?" She questioned, not moving from her spot.

Gibbs sighed and turned slightly to look at her, not saying anything, but just staring, as if that was her cue to speak. She twiddled with her thumbs, "I think that you should talk to Pitt, maybe, to find out more about how I died."

He nodded, "Already thought of that. DiNozzo'll go tomorrow."

She looked at him, after he stood up, and returned the nod, "Thank you, Gibbs."

"DiNozzo," He called, "You can come back later, but you're my ride home."

Tony nodded and went to follow him as he walked out the door before grabbing Ziva's arm and pressing a kiss up against her lips. He let his lips linger on hers for a second or two before pulling back and smiling, running one finger down her jaw, tracing it, "I'll be back, sweetheart."

She nodded, understanding, "I will be here."

He grinned and winked as he heard Gibbs bark his name. He kissed her quickly, one more time, "We'll fix this, Ziva." He assured her, grabbing both shoulders with his hands and staring her deep into the eyes, "I promise." He slowly said before pressing yet another kiss on her forehead, letting go of her and starting into a light jog towards the door, "Enjoy the book!' he called over his shoulder as he disappeared, leaving Ziva alone once again.

* * *

Gibbs waited for Tony outside of the apartment complex, leaning up against his car. Tony rolled his eyes as he pressed the button, the lights flashing as it beeped, signaling that he unlocked it, "Way to be patient, boss."

He didn't say anything as Tony went to get around to the other side of the car, the driver's side, when he stopped and noticed the look that was now upon Leroy Jethro Gibbs' face. He knew that look. And it normally didn't bring good news. He was thinking, deeply, about something that troubled him.

Tony could only guess that he was thinking about Ziva and her predicament.

"So..." Tony started, shoving his hands into his pockets and eying him, "Whatcha thinking?"

He scratched his head and then crossed his arms over his body as he leaned up against the car, staring at his senior field agent, "She's in a hell of a situation, DiNozzo."

Tony nodded, "Yeah, I know."

He sighed and looked down at his shoes, shaking his head, "Honestly..." He took in a breath as he looked back up at Tony, "I don't know how she's gonna get out of it." There was a silence between them and Tony just continued to stare at him, "She's not a cat. She doesn't have nine lives."

It was Tony's turn to sigh as he shoved his hands deep into his pockets, glancing back at the apartment complex before looking back at Gibbs, "That's what I was afraid you were gonna say." Another silence fell between them, "So in other words...she's screwed?"

Gibbs stared at him and then nodded, "Yeah." He took in another deep breath, "She's screwed."


	19. Home Again

**So I think that this is like the fastest I've updated since I started co-authoring! Just to warn you though, this is kind of a filler chapter, though I think that it's pretty important to the story. So please read, enjoy, and review, as always!

* * *

**

He stopped the car in front of Gibbs' house, putting the car in park as he unlocked the doors.

Instead of getting out, Gibbs just sat there, "You're right, you know that, DiNozzo?"

He furrowed his eyebrows together, "About what?"

"She looks different."

"Well yeah, she's been cooped up inside for almost three months."

"But there's one thing that bothered me." He mused, looking forwards and not at the senior field agent, off in the distance.

"What's that?"

He moved his gaze to look at Tony, "She's way too skinny." He quietly said.

Tony looked down at the steering wheel, adjusting his grip on it with his hands, "Yeah..." He sighed, "Noticed that. Thought it was just the baggy sweatshirt and pants."

He shook his head, "She's starving herself." Gibbs groaned as he opened the door and got out of the car.

He went to close it when Tony stopped him, leaning forward, so that he could see his boss' face, "Why?"

"She hurt you. She's gotta punish herself someway." And with that, he closed the door, disappearing into the night, leaving Tony to wallow in his thoughts.

* * *

Tony closed the door to Rebecca's apartment behind him and checked his watch. It was around eleven o'clock at night, and he was slightly exhausted, but he knew that he needed to see Ziva. Smiling, he opened up the door to her room and found her curled up on the twin sized bed, almost in a fetal position, facing the wall. From the boom box that was sitting on the ground, soft classical music filled the room, sad, but beautiful in his opinion.

He closed the door without a sound and then walked over to her, shrugging off his jacket and hanging it on one of the bedposts. He heard her take in a deep, shaky breath as he silently sat down onto the bed, making sure not to move the mattress so much, but just slightly, to let her know his presence.

"I am stuck this way, yes?" She managed to say after a couple of minutes of silence and he heard her sniff.

Tony glanced towards her, barely moving his head as he looked forward again, "Don't know yet." he said, slowly, as if he was unsure of what to say.

"I saw his eyes, Tony." She buried her face deeper into the pillow, so that her voice was muffled, "I am stuck this way. Dead and unknown to the world."

He finally turned his gaze to her, noticing the red that her eyes had taken, the flush of her cheeks. It was obvious that she had been crying, or trying hard not to. One single tear fell down her face and he sighed, "You're not unknown to me."

She moved her head to look up at him, barely moving her body as she ran a hand under her nose, to remove any snot that was there as she sniffed. She whispered, so softly that he was having trouble hearing her, but enough to nearly break his heart, "But I should be."

He leaned forward towards her, "But you're not, Ziva."

"I should have died. Because I was stupid and did not take the antibiotics. I should be dead."

"I'm glad you're not." He shrugged, wanting to 'take the pressure off', even though it wasn't going to work.

She shook her head, "I am not." She let one side of her mouth tug up into a small, sad smile, "I had a dream that we were in our apartment last night." She sighed, "We were...watching movies and eating pizza..." She let a small chuckle escape through her lips before letting out the breath she kept in, "I miss it."

He knew that she wanted a real life. He knew that, if Gibbs was able to, it would be a while till she would be able to live her 'new life'. She wanted out, and, if he had to say so himself, this was a rather drab room, "You know..." Tony sighed, "I miss you."

She sniffed, "Me too, Tony...me too."

"You wanna..." He paused, "Stay at my...our...place?"

Sitting up, she eyed him, "But Tony, that means going outside and-" He placed a finger on her lips, silencing her immediately.

"I saw you at that crime scene. You saw _me _at that crime scene. I know that you can go outside and not be 'caught'. Besides, if you want, I can always buy a wig and bring it over, you can wear really high heels and long pants to cover them up, and sunglasses. No one will even know it's you. All you have to do is go outside to the car-parked right out front-get in, and then get out and into our apartment. That's it."

She stared at him for a little longer before sighing and looking down at her lap, "Tony, I do not..."

"You'll have your own clothes, eat your own food, stay in your own home....sleep in your own bed with your own boyfriend." He grinned, leering towards her, teasing her. She smiled and blushed slightly before looking back up at him.

"What about my father?"

"I won't let anyone hurt you, Ziva." She just blinked, as if she didn't believe what he said, or she didn't hear what he said in the first place, "Am I going to have to pull an Abby and tell you it again?" She paused for a second or two before nodding slowly, falling forward and into his embrace. He stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head, "I won't let anyone hurt you, Ziva." He whispered, bringing her closer to him, "Promise." The two held each other, as if they were afraid that if they let go, they'd lose the other before finally breaking. Ziva stared up into his eyes, but kept her hands on his forearms, "So what do you say?" He questioned and she looked down once more before back up at him.

"I would like that very much."

He grinned and then slipped out of her embrace, jumping off of the bed, "I'm just gonna talk to Rebecca about that for a moment or two and then I'll be right out. You wanna leave now? While it's still dark and no one can truly 'see you'?"

She looked around the room and then nodded, "Yes. I would. But I need to pack up."

"Sure thing." He said, "This will only take a second." And with that, he disappeared out of the room and took in a deep breath.

Rebecca Carter was sitting on the couch, still watching the movie that she had been watching when he and Gibbs arrived. Looking up at him, she smiled and then flicked off the television, "Hi." She tentatively said, like a school girl with her first crush, coming up to talk to her and the lunch table.

"Hey...I need to talk to you."

She nodded and scooted over, patting the brown leather of the couch. He sat down next to her, flashing back to the kiss that they had shared a couple of days ago, "Ziva..." He started.

"My name's not Ziva." She laughed, "It's Rebecca."

He snapped his eyes to hers, "I know that." He responded, no type of comedy in his voice at all. She let her smile drop nearly instantly.

He took in a breath and started again, "Ziva wants to go home."

She looked down at her lap, "I figured that."

"Why did you do it?"

She furrowed her eyebrows together, "Do what?"

"Take her in. You know that you're putting your entire life on stake by taking in someone who claims to be 'dead'. Whom everyone _thinks _is dead."

She sighed, "She was my closest friend." She looked up at him, "She helped me through a lot when my parents died of cancer about two years ago. It was right after you two started dating."

"How come I've never heard of you until now?" He questioned, "Ziva never mentioned anything about you. Or any of her other friends."

She looked around him at the door to Ziva's room and then lowered her voice to barely a whisper, "Just between you and me, besides the people at work, she doesn't have any other friends. And even with me, Ziva pretty much keeps to herself."

Tony furrowed her eyebrows together, "She opens up to me."

She leaned forward even more, her voice lowering to a whisper, and, if possible, with every word spoken, getting softer, "While she was 'dead', I would wake up in the middle of the night, at like 2? And I'd hear this horrible sobbing sound from the bedroom. I'd go to the guest bedroom and she'd be tossing and turning in her sleep, the covers all the way to the end of the bed in a ball, completely _sobbing _in her sleep. She said names, over and over again, a new one each night. 'Gibbs, Abby, McGee, Ducky, Palmer, Jenny, Tony.' But yours was always the loudest and saddest." She leaned forwards, even more, their faces almost touching. It was obvious that she didn't want Ziva to hear, "And one night, she was sobbing, but when I went to check on her, she was looking at this picture. Once she saw me walk in there, she shoved it under her mattress and quickly pretended to go back to sleep. Whenever I asked about it, she always changed the subject." She shrugged, "But her crying is definitely the saddest sound I've ever heard."

_Jenny. _Tony thought. _Jenny is dead, Ziva, surely you know that. _Tony gulped, he really didn't have a response for that, "I...uh..." He started, but Rebecca cut him off again.

"She loves you." She nodded, sadness definite in her voice, "I don't blame her."

Tony sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "Rebecca, that kiss..."

She put her hand up, "I know. Meant nothing."

He let out a breath, "Yeah..." he visibly saw her shoulders slump, "Look, I'm sorry, I just...Ziva...she..."

"It was all an act. To get those people that are after her out of the way."

"Mossad?" He questioned, and she nodded, "Yeah. That's basically it."

The two sat in silence, rather awkwardly before Tony spoke up again, "So anyways, I came out here to ask you if you could help us disguise Ziva so that she could move back in with me."

"But won't those people-Mossad-" She corrected herself, "Know that she's staying with you?"

He shook his head, "I won't let that happen. Nothing's going to hurt her."

She stared into his eyes for a little while longer before nodding, "I believe you."

"So...will you help us?"

"Are you planning to leave tonight?"

"Now, preferably, yeah."

She quickly stood up, "Then we must act. And fast."

"Yeah, I'm tired." he agreed, following her towards the bedroom, "And tonight I may finally be able to get a good night's sleep."

* * *

Back across the Atlantic, seven hours ahead of Washington DC, Mossad Director Eli David paced in front of his office, determining what his next step to take.

She had managed to dupe them, unbelievable he originally thought, but the more he thought about it, the more that he realized that it wasn't entirely as impossible as he thought. Ziva _was _a highly trained Mossad Assassin.

And she was also his daughter, meaning that she knew what he was looking for. But the death certificate was certainly something that more impressed him than shocked him. She had actually made it look like she was dead.

But now he knew that she wasn't.

Even though he was slightly impressed by how probable she made it look, he knew that he had only one thing left to do.

And with that, he finally stopped pacing and slammed his finger down onto the button of his phone, _"Yes, Director David?" _

"Book the next flight to Washington DC."

_"Any flight, sir?"_

"The next one! NOW!" And then he let his finger go, pacing angrily as he started to grab his necessaries for his trip.

NCIS needed a visit.

More importantly, Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo did.

* * *

Ziva slid further down the seat in Tony's Mustang, adjusting her wig and sunglasses as she did so.

Tony looked over to her as they came up to a stop light, smirking, "You know, you're just making it more obvious that that's not your real hair." He commented, gesturing towards the hands that were pulling down on the blond wig on her head. She immediately dropped her hands, "Relax." He sighed, "It's past midnight-" He checked the clock, "And there's _no one _on the road. You're fine."

She nodded, wanting to believe him as she sat up in the seat, straighter, adjusting the seat belt as the light turned green. They were merely a block away from Tony's apartment and Ziva couldn't wait to get safely inside, "You are right, I am being completely ridiculous."

He grinned as he turned the car right, "Of course I am."

She rolled her eyes as Tony smoothly parallel parked the car after cheering for about thirty seconds because there was an empty spot directly in front of his apartment building.

Tony quickly got out of the car and opened up the trunk, pulling out Ziva's small suitcase. Rebecca let Ziva keep the magazines and some of the clothes that she had borrowed from her, such as the sweatpants and sweatshirt.

He sighed, however, as he realized that she wasn't getting out of the car, "Get out of the car!" he nearly shouted, walking to the driver's side and tapping on the glass. He watched as she looked around, to make sure that no cars were coming before cautiously slipping out of the car. Before Tony even had a chance to _think _about what he was going to say, she bolted up the steps, leaving Tony to huff.

He locked the door to the car, grabbed her suitcase, and made it upstairs, where she was huddling by the door. Rolling his eyes he opened it up and she quickly got in, nearly dragging him in the process. She locked the door in all ways it could possibly lock and then visibly relaxed, removing the sunglasses, high heels, and wig, stashing them into the coat closet.

And then, she paused, looking around the living room with eyes wide and glistening with joy.

Tony smiled.

She was happy.

He took the moment to put the suitcase in their bedroom while Ziva roamed through the living room and kitchen, smiling to herself. Tony pulled off his clothes, leaving him in his boxers, and then started towards the bed. He was beat. He knew that Ziva would come to the bedroom when she was ready. However, once he started to crawl under the covers, he paused when he heard padded, light footsteps enter the bedroom.

She stopped in the doorway and smiled at him, "You kept everything the same."

"Well..." he scratched his head, "Kinda." He pointed towards the closet, "When you...died...I put all your belongings in a box and shoved them in the back of the closet. I couldn't look at them."

Sighing, she walked towards him and put her hands on his forearms, reaching up and pecking him on the lips before standing back down on her own two feet, "I am sorry, Tony." She whispered, sincerity definite in her eyes.

"It's not your fault." He murmured.

"Yes, it is. I caused your pain."

He snapped his eyes to hers and let a grin cross his face, "You can also cause me pleasure." She barely had a chance to smile before he closed the space between them, pressing his lips up against hers for a passionate, fiery kiss. They both opened their mouths for the other and fought for possession of the kiss, Tony's hand running up her shirt, tracing the muscles there. Gibbs was right; she was all skin and bones. He had to make sure that she ate more. He slipped the shirt over her head, breaking the kiss just slightly before attaching his lips to hers again, like magnets.

The rest of the clothes eventually came off and the made it on the bed, Ziva letting Tony be on top, for she just wanted to be loved. He paused above her, one knee on each side of her slightly spread legs as she looked up at him. He pushed some hair out of her face and looked her deep in he eyes, "You sure you want to do this?"

She chuckled, "It _has _been at least a week."

"Ten days."

"Whatever. Besides, think of it as your 'thank you' present," She smiled and he still paused above her, running one hand over the tense muscles in her back, "What?" She questioned, confused as to why he was hesitating.

He leaned closer to her, "I _promise _I won't let anything happen to you." He whispered, "Besides, it's like Ziva David exists, right?" He grinned and he felt the muscles relax as he let a smile cross his face.

She wrapped her arm around his neck, twirling the hair there as she gazed into his green eyes, whispering with love, passion, and all the trust that she could muster, "I love you."

And for once, she felt safe as he soared her into ecstasy, the rest of the problems and troubles in the world forgotten.


	20. Problem

**WARNING! WARNING! **

**LOTS OF TIVA LOVING THIS CHAPTER! **

**Not that that's a BAD thing, but I just thought I'd give you guys a heads up! So please read!

* * *

**

"Doesn't this just feel....good?" Tony questioned as he pulled on the curly locks that cascaded down Ziva David's back, the new morning sunlight shining through the sheer curtains of the window in the bedroom.

"Mmm..." She murmured, slightly in agreement as he held her closer to him, her hot naked body all but jammed up against his own.

He buried his face into the top of her head, her full hair making it so that her words were mumbled, "That's the first good night's rest I've had since you died. Well, besides when I found out you were alive."

She just nodded, for she didn't truly know much else to say.

They sat in that silence for a little, just wanting to feel the others body next to their own, Ziva basking in the air conditioning of the apartment. She took in a deep breath and smiled. She missed this, oh so much. Everything just smelled different, and she never had to smell Rebecca's cheap perfume and flowery shampoo ever again. Just Tony and his extremely masculine scent. She was just about to doze off again before Tony sat up quickly, "I'm making you breakfast." He suddenly said and she groaned.

"I am not hungry, Tony."

"Sure you are!" he grinned, throwing the covers off of him and swinging his legs over the bed, pulling on his boxers as he started out of the bedroom, calling over his shoulder, "I'll make you a smorgasbord."

She furrowed her eyebrows together, "What?"

"I'm making you _everything _Zee-vah!"

* * *

Five chocolate chip pancakes topped with maple syrup, a quarter pound of bacon, three eyes, four pieces of toast with jelly and butter, and a couple of glasses of coffee, tea, and orange juice later, Tony and Ziva were both completely stuffed and happy.

Tony seriously didn't think that he had ever seen Ziva eat so much in his life, and he was amazed as to how she drowned pancake after pancake, bacon after bacon, and toast after toast down her throat.

Gibbs was right.

Checking his watch he pulled the napkin from where it was tucked in to his shirt and threw it away in the trashcan, making a basketball shot, "Well I gotta go to work."

Ziva glanced up at him and then quickly stood up, following him towards the door, "You are...leaving me?"

"Well I gotta." he shrugged, "You know that Gibbs will have my head." He watched as her eyes darted around, her fingers twirling her Star of David necklace, both signaling that she was nervous.

"I have not been left alone since I have died."

He laughed, "I never thought I'd see the day where Ziva David was afraid!"

She narrowed her eyes at him, "Shut up, DiNozzo."

He sighed, "Oh yeah, I've been meanin' to talk to you." He realized, his last name slipping out her mouth reminding him of his dad.

"About what?"

"I'll tell you later." He watched as her face fell, as if that was going to buy her a little more time with him, "Besides, you'll be fine, Ziva. I'm gonna come home for lunch anyways. But..." He sighed, reaching into his pocket, "If you have any problems, just call me." He slipped the cell phone into her hand, closing her small fingers around it. He leaned down close to her lips, his face just inches from hers, barely whispering, "Stay safe." He pecked her softly and then left the apartment, the door closing behind him, barely a sound echoing in the apartment.

And suddenly, Ziva felt alone in the world once more.

* * *

_Ding. _

The elevator doors opened and Tony DiNozzo sighed as he walked into the squad room, throwing his backpack behind his desk, plopping down in his seat.

He looked up at Gibbs' empty desk and briefly wondered where he went. McGee was feasting on a breakfast burrito at his desk as he waited for his computer to start up, leaving Tony to sigh on his own.

McGee swallowed what was in his mouth loudly before speaking, "So we're getting a new recruit today."

Tony just grunted, "Great. Can we _do _something today instead of just sit here and work on cold cases all day?"

"Sure you can, DiNozzo." He heard Gibbs call from up on the catwalk. Tony looked up and nearly backwards as he watched his boss lean up against the railing, "With me."

He jumped up from his seat and followed him up the stairs and into MTAC, "What's this about?" Tony finally questioned as Gibbs motioned for the techies to put the picture up on the screen as he took a front seat. Tony took the seat to the right of him and leaned back, adjusting his jacket.

"How's _Rebecca?"_

He furrowed his eyebrows together before he realized that he wasn't talking about Rebecca at all. Rebecca was code name for 'Ziva', "Oh." He realized, "She came home last night."

"Your home?" He questioned, raising one eyebrow and he nodded.

"Yeah."

"How does she feel about this?"

"Oh much better." he nodded, "_Much _better."

He returned the nod, affectionately, "Good. Really good."

"So why'd you call me up here? Well, besides to ask about 'Rebecca'."

Gibbs slightly pointed towards the screen before nodding his head towards it, "Take a look for yourself."

On the screen was Former NCIS Agent Lynn Garter and his _fake _dad, Anthony De Luca, both being carted away by police on ZNN news, "What the hell is this?" Tony questioned, furrowing his eyebrows together.

"The two admitted to giving you the plague again and plotting against you and Ziva. They were arrested for biological warfare, endangerment, and..." He looked at him, "First degree murder."

Tony sighed and leaned back in his seat, grinning this time, "At least _something's _right in the world."

* * *

McGee sighed as he printed out his report on another cold case. He honestly hated doing cold work, and he wanted something...new. Almost disgusted with himself, he thought about how much he actually _wanted _someone to get murdered, just so that he'd have something to do.

He'd been practicing his interrogation techniques, and he wanted to show them off to Gibbs.

He grabbed the freshly printed sheet out of the printer and then sat down at his desk, smoothing out the paper as he ran a hand down his face, "Great, just great..."

Tony's desk phone started to ring, breaking him out of his thoughts. He looked over at it and then back up at MTAC, as if Tony was magically going to appear there. He didn't, and it continued to ring.

He stood up carefully and walked towards it, as if Tony was going to just jump out of nowhere and laugh in his face. However, if it was this 'new girlfriend' of his, he could mess with his head just a little.

Grinning, he picked up the phone and brought it slowly to his ear, "Yeah." He responded, deepening his voice a little, to make it sound more like Tony's.

They paused before speaking, quickly,_"Tony, I need you to come down here. Now."_

McGee blinked.

Once.

Twice.

He could literally hear his heart rate accelerate as he recognize the voice, "Ziva?" He suddenly heard himself saying, incredulously, a his response was a dial tone.

Furrowing his eyebrows together, he pulled it back from his ear and stared at the receiver, as if there was something wrong with it, "Who was that?" Tony demanded and Tim snapped his head up, the senior field agent standing in front of him.

He fumbled with the phone, bouncing in his hands as he managed to return it to its place, "N-No one."

He narrowed his eyes at him as he walked towards him, slowly, "It was someone, McGoo. Why were you answering my phone?"

"Well it was...r-ringing and I just picked it up to take a message for you, Tony, that's all I was trying to do."

"What did they say? Who was it? Why were you messing with my stuff?"

"They never told me anything." He put his hands up, "Besides that they needed you to go down there. Now."

"_Who, _McGee?" He shouted and McGee opened and closed his mouth several times before sighing.

"I don't know."

"Yeah you do."

He sighed and closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose, "No, I don't, but I can tell you who it _sounded _like."

Tony groaned, "Fine. Who?"

He took in a deep breath, "Ziva."

Tony paused and then stood there for a little bit before racing to his desk and throwing open the drawer, gearing up.

"Where are you going?" He demanded.

"To get some lunch!" he snapped as he started out of the bullpen, swinging his backpack over his shoulder, pulling his gun out and making sure it was loaded before returning it to his holster.

"With a gun?"

"I like my turkey." He shouted before pointing a finger at him, "Don't answer my phone again, McAnswering Machine!"

And with that, he was gone, leaving McGee to stand there in near shock and complete confusion. Gibbs entered the bullpen, coffee in hand and stared at McGee, "Something the matter?" He questioned and Tim just nodded, slowly.

"Yeah...Tony was acting really weird."

He smirked, "And you are shocked by this, McGee?"

"Well that's not it. See, when he was up in MTAC with you, his phone rang. So, trying to be a gentlemen, I went to pick it up and take a message, but-" He stopped and Gibbs looked at him, raising an eyebrow.

"You gonna finish, McGee?"

He looked around a little bit before leaning in towards him, "It sounded like Ziva." Gibbs just stood there, his famous poker face on, "And then when I told Tony about it, he all of a sudden just geared up and then left."

"What'd the caller say?" Gibbs questioned, walking around his desk, setting down his coffee, and pulling out his gun, holstering it to his belt loop. McGee watched in confusion, but spoke anyways.

"That she needed Tony to get down there. And now." Gibbs didn't say anything as he broke into a light jog and exited the bullpen. McGee just stared at the fresh cup of coffee left on Gibbs' desk.

* * *

Tony all but threw open the door to his apartment, kicking it shut as he raised his gun, starting slowly into the living room, the only changes a new James Bond DVD on the coffee table and Ziva's quilt on the couch. Moving to the kitchen, he noticed nothing different, just the fact that all of the dirty dishes from breakfast were cleaned and put nicely away.

Slowly, he started down the hall to the bedroom, the door slightly ajar, but only sunlight coming through the cracks. He heard a small moan from behind the door and he gulped, his heart rate accelerating as he kicked the door open, nearly off the hinges as he shouted, "Federal agent!"

From underneath the covers, Ziva sat up and blinked, obviously not that shocked that there was a fully loaded, cocked gun pointed at her, "Shalom." She quietly said, and he looked around the room, his heart rate dying down as he holstered his gun once again.

"Ziva..." He let out his breath at the same time as he said her name, "What's wrong?" He questioned, hurriedly walking towards her and sitting down next to her, brushing back the hair that had fallen in front of her face. He pressed the back of his hand on her forehead to feel her temperature and then started down her face to her cheek and her neck, pausing to take her pulse, "Are you okay?" He questioned, resting his hand on her shoulder, "Do you feel sick? Have a fever? Thrown up? Have a stomach-" He stopped when he felt her finger on his lips, stopping him from talking.

"I am fine." She said, in the same quiet tone.

He sighed and looked her in the eyes before crawling over her and scooting into bed next to her, wrapping an arm around the Israeli and holding her to him. He rested his head on hers and spoke after moments of silence, "You talked to McGee."

She paused before answering, nodding slowly at first, "Yes."

He chuckled softly, "I think he thinks he's going crazy. Nice job, Zee-vah." he tugged gently at one of the locks drooping down her back.

She buried her head into his chest and he smiled down at her before he let it fade, "What's going on? Why did you call me so urgently?"

She shook her head, "It was nothing. Stupid, actually."

He grinned, "You missed me."

"No." She sighed, "Yes." he grinned and went to speak again when she stopped him, "But I just..." She hugged him tighter to her, "...have this gut feeling."

"Like Gibbs?"

"Much worse." She whispered.

"About what?" He asked, curious.

"When I was younger, I used to have this...sense...that my father was coming. I am feeling it now."

"But he doesn't know you're alive!" he protested, and Ziva looked up at him.

"I do not know that for sure."

He sighed and held her closer, kissing the crown of her head, "Nothing's going to hurt you, Ziva." He said into her hair.

She held him, if possible, tighter.

She wanted to believe him.

But her gut was telling her the opposite.

It was telling her to run.

Far away.

Fast.

And now.

Before it's too late.

* * *

Tony called Rebecca and told her to come over and visit him, meaning, in Tony language, that she was supposed to take care of Ziva. He had wanted to stay with her all night, but Gibbs had called and barked at him to, in his words, 'Get his ass back to work.'

After kissing her softly and leaving her in his clothes, in their bed, eating a sandwich Tony had made, he left silently. After, of course, Rebecca made it safely into the apartment.

"Ziva?" Rebecca called as she started into the apartment, dropping her keys onto the table next to the door, hanging up her coat on the coat hanger, also by the door. She received no answer, "Ziva?" She called again, "It's Rebecca."

There was a long pause before she finally got an answer, "In here." She heard her softly call.

She made her way to the bedroom, pausing to notice her favorite movie, James Bond, on the coffee table, just _sitting _there. Moving on and opening up the door to the bedroom, she smiled at her, gently, "Hey, Ziva..." She smiled, but Ziva didn't sit up to look at her.

"Shalom, Rebecca."

She slowly walked around the bed to the other side, so that she could better see her face, "Can I sit here?" She questioned, pointing to the empty mattress next to her. She paused before responding with a small nod, scooting over even though she didn't need to.

Rebecca took her seat on the bed and stared down at the cream comforter, "So....I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that...you're upset."

"No." She shook her head, sitting up so that she was leaning up against the pillows on the bed, "I am just bored. And I am...honestly..." She sighed as Rebecca gave her a closed, sad smile.

"Scared?" She questioned and Ziva looked down and then back up at her. She nodded, understanding that she had just answered 'yes', "I would think so. Everyone thinks you're dead and the man you love has left you alone in his apartment."

"_Our _apartment." She corrected, "Tony and I were living with each other before I 'died'" She put air quotations around the word 'died' with her fingers.

"Oh, I see." She nodded, "Tony _is _an incredible man." She gestured towards the sandwich, "Did he make that for you?"

Ziva furrowed her eyebrows together, "How would _you_ know that Tony is an incredible man?"

"Oh." She quickly said, the heat rushing to her cheeks as she tried to make up for her mistake, "I meant that he's an incredible kisser!"

By Ziva's reaction, she knew that that was the _wrong _thing to say. Her mouth dropped open and her chocolate brown eyes turned absolutely murderous, "What?" She quietly asked, her voice velvet soft, but deadly, "How would _you _know that?"

"I..." She paused, gaping, trying to find the words that weren't coming to her.

"He kissed you." She finally decided, anger seething in her words, "And you let him. No, the more important thing is that _he _kissed _you._"

Rebecca gulped.

Sometimes, she forgot her occupation was to kill people.

And that _definitely _wasn't the right thing to say.

* * *

Tony whistled as he started back into the squadroom, throwing down his backpack behind him, "Anyone call for me?" He questioned, looking up at McGee as he took his gun off of his holster and throwing it into the drawer, slamming it shut.

McGee paused, no, _fumbled_ with his answer, so Tony responded, "That's right!" He pointed a finger at him, "You _shouldn't _know! Cause I told you not to pick up my phone!" He grinned, "Probie actually did something right!"

"Shut up, DiNozzo." He muttered, "I wouldn't be so _happy _if I were you."

"Oh yeah?" He questioned, "And why's that?"

McGee looked around and then stood up from his desk, Tony standing next to his own waiting for Tim's response, "You have a visitor, Tony." He responded as he walked towards him.

"Who?" He questioned, furrowing his eyebrows together.

"Mossad Director Eli David, Agent DiNozzo." He heard Vance say from behind him, and he turned slowly to look at him, the two of them standing in the entrance of the bullpen. Eli David had his hands behind his back, in somewhat of a military stance, a rather angry expression on his face.

"Uh...good...afternoon, sir." He gave a shaky smile as he extended his hand towards him. Eli just looked down at it as Vance spoke up.

"He arrived just after you left, according to McGee."

"To go and visit my daughter, yes?" Eli questioned and even Vance was confused.

Tony gave a sarcastic laugh, "That would be...impossible, sir, considering that her body was transferred to Tel Aviv a couple of months ago for a proper burial service."

"She is alive." He nodded, "You know that. You are keeping her from the rest of the world, confining her."

Tony tried to act confused, even though he felt the sweat drip down his back, "I...I d-don't know what you're talking about, sir."

The Mossad Director gave a short chuckle before starting towards him, his eyes murderous, "You will tell me where she is, or you will wish that you had died from the plague, understand?"

Tony just gulped, more sweat running down his back.

And, with all of that, one thought ran through his head:

_Shit._

_Ziva's gonna _kill_ me.

* * *

_

**So that's the chapter! I have to admit that I was a little disappointed at the lack of reviews I got last chapter. I mean, I know it was a 'filler' chapter, but I was still a little sad! Oh well, as long as people read and love it, that's fine with me! Just drop me one, it doesn't have to be long, just like 'Update soon' or something! I was going to update when I reached 400 reviews, which required only 2 more, but I didn't get them. Oh well. I hope you all enjoyed THIS chapter, I'm actually SUPER excited about this story now! So, you know the drill, the more you review, the FASTER I update! I have lots in store, so HANG ON! **


	21. Dealing

**I am SO incredibly sorry about the lateness of this chapter. And I know it's short, but TRUST ME, I think it's a good place to stop, at the end :) So please please PLEASE review! I still love you guys!**

Leon Vance, Eli David, Tony DiNozzo, and Timothy McGee all looked between each other, trying to figure everything out.

Tony's heart was beating uncontrollably; so hard that he could barely slow it down, much less conceal the pulsating veins.

"Where is she, Agent DiNozzo?" He asked once again and Tony just stood there.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He finally said, after he took in a deep breath, trying to keep a cool, stone visage for the Director of Mossad. Who knew what tricks he could pull out his sleeve at any moment. He knew Ziva, after all.

"Do not play games with me, I do not have time for that." He took another step towards him, "I am going to ask you one more time, Agent DiNozzo," He spit his name as if it was the Devil's himself, "Where _is _she?"

Tony knew that playing that he didn't know wouldn't last for long, so he groaned, "Even if I _did _know where she was, _why _in the world would I tell you?" He demanded, "Because last time I checked, you couldn't care less about her, and she's your own damn daughter! You haven't called her in nearly three years, you didn't even call her on her _birthday. _She is a _gem, _sir, and she is in your life, yet you choose to throw her in the back as if she doesn't matter, or as if you don't give a damn about her or her safety." He took in a breath before continuing, "You manipulate her, you use her as a bargaining tool, and you climb on top of everyone, including Ziva, to get to the top. You couldn't care less about her. She's right. You're not family. We are. Right here. In this room. McGee, Gibbs, Abby, Ducky, Palmer, _Me, _hell even Vance. But she is _nothing _to you. So you tell me again why I should tell you where she is. Because no matter how much you threaten me, I won't tell you. I refuse to let her get hurt. I refuse to break a promise I made to her. Unlike _you. _And if you dare threaten me again, I will take out my gun and shoot you, I don't give a damn if I go to prison for life. At least Ziva'll be safe. So tell me." He nodded, "_Why _the hell-" He slammed his hand down onto the desk, making a loud sound the rebounded throughout the bullpen, "-should I tell you where she is?"

Eli paused for a moment, taking in the words. McGee dropped his mouth open, realizing that Ziva was, in fact, the woman he had heard on the phone. Vance had on a poker face next to Eli David.

Tony's face was bright red, like a tomato, and McGee was sure that it was going to burst if Eli said anything else demeaning to him or Ziva. Or threatened his life again.

Eli sighed, "Well, Agent DiNozzo, you have confirmed that she is alive. You have also confirmed that you are hiding her."

"And?" Tony prompted. That couldn't possibly be all that he was going to say about the situation.

"And..." he let out a breath, "Ziva faking her own death was not exactly what I wanted to happen."

"No!" Tony pointed a finger at him, "It wasn't! You wanted her to die. You _ordered _her not to have the antibiotics. I was there. I was next to her. I listened, smelled, watched her die in front of me. And I believed that she died. I went through _hell _all because of you." He jabbed his finger on his chest, causing him to back up slightly, "I thought she was dead. She died because she was afraid. Afraid of you. Afraid of what you would do to her. She was sure that she would be killed, or, worse, sent back to Israel, away from all of us."

"Away from you." He said, his voice soft, his accent thick and heavy. Tony paused and relaxed his shoulders slightly, furrowing his eyebrows together, "I know just how much she cares about you, Agent DiNozzo."

"How do you know that?" He demanded.

"The last time I saw her...her eyes were different. Filled with compassion. I would only be fit to assume that you put it there."

Tony was at a loss of words, unsure of what exactly to say.

So, Eli David continued, "I would like to see her."

Tony narrowed his eyes at him, "Never in a million years." he spat, walking around and grabbing his backpack and gun, swinging the pack over one shoulder. He started out of the bullpen, calling over his shoulder, "Oh, I changed my mind. You can see her." He paused and turned to look at him, "When she's dead and gone."

And with that, he left, leaving the rest there in silence to process the news and Tony's words.

* * *

Tony all but kicked down the door to his apartment, adrenaline running through his veins.

Eli David knew that Ziva was alive.

And he was pretty sure that he had horrible plans for her.

And he needed to save her life.

He had already 'lost' her once; he didn't really want to lose her again.

The apartment was dark and quiet, all of the blinds closed as he threw his NCIS issued backpack onto the ground, hurrying towards the bedroom. His heart was pulsing so hard, he was surprised that it didn't pound out of his chest.

"Ziva?" He called, "Ziva!" He poked his head into the kitchen, realizing she wasn't there, and then broke into a light jog, into the bedroom, "Ziva?" He questioned, but then realized that the apartment was empty. He ran a hand through his hair and spun around in a circle, "Damn it." He muttered to himself. He needed to get Ziva out of here, out of the country, somewhere where her father wouldn't know where she went, "DAMN IT!" He shouted, spinning around fully and then slamming his fists down on the bed.

He closed his eyes tight and stared down at his fists, wincing. He needed to know where she was.

He gripped the comforter harder, but stopped when he heard a crinkling sound.

Opening one eye, he stared at the piece of paper that he had crumpled.

Sitting up quickly, he grabbed it, his eyes skimming across the words carefully, precisely, and with a good speed.

_Jean-Paul-_

_I cannot honestly believe how you could have kept that a secret from me. Rebecca informed me of it this morning after you left for work. Do not expect to see me again; I realize now, more than ever, that I am better off dead, like I 'was' before._

_I still love you, but I feel that this is the best way._

_-Sophie._

Sophie...Jean-Paul...he hadn't heard those names since their undercover assignment many years ago.

And what was she talking about?

His heart dropped.

She wasn't honestly going to...kill herself?

She must have somehow known that her father was here.

Acting quickly, he grabbed her suitcase out of the closet and shoved a mixture of her and his clothes in it, some necessities from several drawers, and grabbed his cell and backpack before moving out of the apartment.

Once outside, he unlocked the trunk to the Mustang and threw the suitcase in the back. As he slammed it shut, he took one last look at the apartment and then looked down at the note in his hand.

Sighing, he walked around to the driver's side, getting in and igniting the engine. He leaned his head back on the headrest as he switched the car from 'park' to 'drive'.

As he drove off, he realized something.

He had no intention of going back.

* * *

It honestly wasn't a surprise that he found her outside of Bethesda Naval Hospital.

She leaned up against a pillar, staring at the doors as they opened and closed, letting doctors, nurses, families, and lovers enter and go, some happy, some in tears.

Taking his time, he approached her slowly, pausing for a while when he was about ten feet from her, "Why did you do it?" She finally asked, sensing his presence.

He shoved his hands into his pockets and looked around before taking a careful step forwards, "Kiss Rebecca?" He saw her slightly nod and he sighed, "I..." He looked down at the ground and then back up at her, "I had to pretend she was my girlfriend." He shrugged, "I guess I just got so used to kissing her goodbye and hello that I..." He sighed once again, "It was a honest mistake, Ziva, please."

She turned abruptly towards him, on her heels, "You have struck a nerve, Tony." She nodded and it was only then that he realized that she had been crying.

"I can see that. But we have bigger problems that we have to deal with."

"Like what?" She demanded before scoffing, "It's not like anyone knows I am alive anyways!"

"Your father does, for one, and I'm pretty sure that that's important." She snapped her eyes up to his and studied him.

"My father." She repeated, and Tony nodded.

He took a step towards her, "He showed up at work this morning. Demanded to know where you were."

"And what did you say?"

"That I would never tell him. Ever. No matter if my life depended on it." He took another careful step towards her, noticing that she didn't back away. This was definitely a good sign, "That I would never let you get hurt like that."

"So my father knows." She took in a deep breath, "That I am alive."

Tony paused before nodding, "Yep." He shoved his hands deeper into his pockets, "Ziva I'm sorry, I-"

She put a hand up, stopping him, "I understand."

"The point is...I want to keep my promise to you." He continued, "I want to make sure you're safe."

She scoffed and rolled her eyes, chuckling slightly, "And how do you plan on doing that?"

He stepped towards her, so that their bodies were merely inches away from each others. He carefully, gently, lovingly took her hand in his, rubbing the back of her hand with his thumb. She looked down at it, "Marry me." He whispered and her eyes met his, the beautiful, dazzling green ones that were shimmering with compassion and determination, "Ziva, run away and marry me."

**:) **


End file.
